April 20, 2018 — PROVINCETOWN, Mass. — The crew of the research vessel Shearwater has been out on the water for six frigid hours with almost nothing to show for it.
On deck, two coverall-clad observers brace themselves against the biting wind and snow, alert for the white plume of a spout or the fleeting wave of a tail.
On the bridge, marine biologist Charles “Stormy” Mayo searches, too, his brow furrowed in a deepening frown. It is early April, and these plankton-rich waters should be full of hungry animals. But all he can see are dark gray waves and dull, cloudy sky.
“Where the hell are the whales?” he demands.
For years, spring has signaled the return of North Atlantic right whales — one of Earth’s most endangered species — to Cape Cod Bay.
Read the full story at the Washington Post