Monday, April 26, 2010

Whale Warning in Effect


Just after a man drowned off Cape Cod when his canoe was flipped by a whale, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries is warning boaters to be careful of right whales around Martha’s Vineyard.

The rare mammals migrate to these waters each spring, but this year they seem especially abundant between the the Vineyard and Block Island, RI. Around 100 of the whales have been spotted in the area within the past few days.

A slow-speed zone has been established through May 5, and vessels 65 feet and larger are asked to travel at no more than 10 knots, or about 11.5 mph between the two islands. As you might expect, ship collisions are a common killer of these nearly extinct whales according to the Boston Globe.


View Block Island to Martha's Vineyard in a larger map

The right whales traveled up to the area from Georgia, and are expected to move on to the Bay of Fundy off Nova Scotia shortly according to the NOAA.

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(Photo: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission/NOAA)

1 comment:

  1. Interesting timing. Cape Wind advances in effort to build turbines in same area these whales migrate each year.

    Editorial from USA Today.

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