The winter calving season has had some serious highs and lows. So far, 19 calves have been identified during the 2023-2024 season. This includes a newborn calf of Palmetto (Eg #1970) sighted off Hilton Head Island, SC. Palmetto is known for giving birth off SC! Unfortunately, 4 of these calves are either dead or likely to be dead, and 3 additional deaths of females, including the mother of a newborn, have occurred in the past month, from ship strikes and entanglement. The first calf of the season and its mother Juno (Eg #1612) were spotted off Georgetown, SC, on Nov. 28, 2023. On Jan. 3, 2024, the same calf was spotted off Edisto island, SC, with severe wounds from a boat propeller, and the calf's carcass washed up Cumberland Island, GA on Mar. 3, 2024. On Jan. 5, 2024, a mother (Eg #3780) was spotted without her newborn calf. Although nothing is known about the status of the calf or the reason for the separation, this is most likely an indicator that the calf did not survive. On Jan. 14, 2024, Half Note (Eg #1301), was seen without her newborn calf. The calf has most likely died from failure to thrive, as it was observed earlier in the season looking very thin, and the mother Half Note has a history of reduced ability to nurse her young. On Jan. 28, 2024, a 3-year-old female (Eg # 5120) killed by an entanglement washed up on Martha’s Vineyard, MA, and the rope collected during necropsy carried purple zip tie markings from the Maine lobster fishery. The Maine lobster fishery was required to utilize gear markings following a 2020 rule for state waters and a 2021 rule for federal waters. On Feb. 13, a 1-year-old female carcass (calf of Eg#4340, Pilgrim) was found off Savannah, GA with evidence of vessel strike. On Mar. 30, 2024, the carcass of adult female (Eg#1950) was found off the coast of Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, VA, and necropsy confirmed that the cause of death was a vessel strike. This whale was the mother of a newborn calf (first spotted Jan. 11, 2024), who is not expected to survive without its mother. If you see a stranded whale, please use the stranding hotline 866-755-6622 from Maine to Virginia and 1-877-WHALE-HELP from North Carolina to Florida to report all sightings so the stradings network can respond as soon as possible. Comments are closed.
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AuthorErin Meyer-Gutbrod is an Assistant Professor at the University of South Carolina. Her lab researches human impacts to marine ecosysems. Archives
April 2024
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