How and Why to Make Things “Right” for the North Atlantic Right Whale

By Kasandra Kutzer

Background Information

The North Atlantic Right Whale, or Eubalaena glacialis, is part of the order Cetacea and the family Balaenidae. These whales have V-shaped blowholes and are black with no dorsal fin. Some of them have fully black bellies, while others have white patches. They are about 14 feet long when they are born and can grow to be up to 52 feet. These whales forage off the coast of New England but rear their young along the Southeastern coast of the United States, from North Carolina to Florida. North Atlantic Right Whales are filter feeders, munching on copepods and zooplankton. They engage in complex social behaviors as well. They form surface-active groups where they socialize, mate, and make vocalizations to communicate. These whales can live more than 70 years, and scientists can even estimate their age using their earwax! Females become sexually mature around age 10 and give birth every 3 years in the right conditions. 

Threats to North Atlantic Right Whales

Unfortunately, North Atlantic Right Whales are classified as endangered. There are only 370 of them left in the world. They have also been experiencing an Unusual Mortality Event, or UME, since 2017. One of the main reasons for this is that they are often involved in fishing entanglements. In fact, such incidents are so prominent that more than 85% of North Atlantic Right Whales have been entangled at least once. In other words, of the 370 North Atlantic Right Whales left, about 315 of them have been caught in fishing gear. These entanglements are the leading cause of death for these whales. Specifically, fishing for American Lobsters results in these incidents most often. 

Another big reason for the population decline of these whales is vessel strikes. The whales can suffer severe damage, such as deep lacerations and broken bones. Such injuries and even death are possible regardless of boat size. Right Whales are also threatened by climate change and noise pollution, both of which affect their ability to forage.

Effects of These Threats

Not only do these threats affect the abundance of Right Whales, but they also affect the whales in other measurable ways. Remember when I stated that these whales can live longer than 70 years? Well, this is only true when they manage to avoid death from vessel strikes and entanglements. In recent years, their average lifespan has been reduced to 45 years in females and 65 years in males. You may also remember that female Right Whales can give birth every 3 years. Again, this is only true without the threats they face due to human activity. Now, Right Whales only give birth every 6 to 10 years.

Why it Matters

This is particularly alarming considering the ecological importance of Right Whales. All whales contribute to an ecological phenomenon known as the Whale Poop Loop. Though its name may sound silly, it is actually a very important process. The Whale Poop Loop refers to the transfer of important nutrients from whale poop to phytoplankton. In turn, the phytoplankton then produce oxygen. They also contribute to the food chain by providing nutrients to organisms such as zooplankton and fish, which in turn provide nutrients for us. The Whale Poop Loop is responsible for generating 50% of the oxygen in our air. So, for every other breath you take, you have a whale to thank! 

The Poop Loop isn’t the only way that whales regulate the composition of our atmosphere, either. They are also involved in carbon sequestration, which mitigates climate change by keeping excess carbon dioxide out of the air. In fact, a single whale sequesters about 33 tons of carbon in its life. For comparison, this is almost triple the amount of carbon that an oak tree sequesters in its life, despite living up to 500 years. To put this into perspective, let’s think about the North Atlantic Right Whale’s rate of carbon sequestration. With an average lifespan of 55 years between males and females and a sequestration total of 33 tons of carbon, we can estimate that each North Atlantic Right Whale is sequestering about 0.6 tons of carbon per year. In the case of oak trees, we can use their lifespan of 500 years and a sequestration total of 12 tons of carbon to estimate that each oak tree sequesters about 0.024 tons of carbon per year. This means that every year, one North Atlantic Right Whale sequesters about 25 times more carbon than one oak tree. Of course, this doesn’t account for the fact that there are far more oak trees than North Atlantic Right Whales. With a population size of 370 and a yearly sequestration rate of 0.6 tons per individual, North Atlantic Right Whales are only sequestering a total of about 222 tons of carbon per year. Therefore, if we increase the population size of these whales, their efficient sequestration rate could be more impactful. 

How You Can Help

Now that you know why North Atlantic Right Whales are so important, you may want to know how to help them. First, you can take action if you spot an entangled whale. In such a situation, you should make sure not to enter the water with the whale. You should then log the GPS coordinates of the whale before calling an entanglement and stranding responder. If you’re a local reader, you should call one of the following organizations: the Northeast Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Stranding and Entanglement Hotline, the Seacoast Science Center, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, the Center for Coastal Studies, the Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), or the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah. Be sure to wait for the responders to free the whale rather than trying to do so yourself. In the meantime, it is a good idea to monitor the whale and take pictures and videos for documentation. 

Not only can you help a whale that has already been entangled, but you can also help to prevent such instances. For example, if you are going fishing, you should always take your waste with you rather than leaving it in the water. You can also participate in ocean cleanup events to help remove waste left by others. Another way to help prevent whale entanglements is by avoiding the consumption of seafood caught in ways that contribute to it. You can do this by asking restaurant or grocery store staff if your seafood is being sourced from sustainable fishing. You can also determine whether your seafood was sustainably caught by looking out for Marine Stewardship Council labels or choosing products from the Seafood Watch list. You can also eat less popular seafood that is not being overfished as much, such as shellfish, black cod, and Arctic char. Remember that fishing for American Lobster contributes the most to North Atlantic Right Whale entanglement. Therefore, it could also help to avoid eating lobster whenever possible. 

Since climate change is also a threat, mitigating it would help the whales. One way you can do this is by reducing your carbon footprint. You can use renewable energy via participation in a Community Choice Aggregation or by using solar panels. Additionally, composting and reducing your use of single-use plastics can help. You can also support climate-friendly government policies and businesses. You can do the former by contacting your representatives, whom you can find here.

Finally, you can help by supporting organizations that contribute to the conservation of North Atlantic Right Whales. Whether by donating, volunteering, or spreading awareness, you can make a difference for these animals and their valuable contribution to the environment and our atmosphere.

Citations

1. Carini, F. (2025, July 31). 'Whale poop loop' keeps ocean and humans alive and well. Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-whale-poop-loop-ocean-humans.html. 

2. The Marine Mammal Center. (2021, September 24). Entanglement Response. Marine Mammal Center. https://www.marinemammalcenter.org/science-conservation/conservation/cetacean-conservation/entanglement-response. 

3. Myers, H.J., Moore, M.J. (2020). Reducing effort in the U.S. American lobster (Homarus americanus) fishery to prevent North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) entanglements may support higher profits and long-term sustainability. Marine Policy, 118, e104017. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2020.104017. 

4. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2017, October 22). Entanglement of Marine Life: Risks and Response. NOAA Fisheries. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/insight/entanglement-marine-life-risks-and-response. 

5. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2025, July 11). North Atlantic Right Whale. NOAA Fisheries. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/north-atlantic-right-whale. 

6. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2025, June 18). Report a Stranded or Injured Marine Animal. NOAA Fisheries. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/report.