PROVINCETOWN, Mass., — April 22, 2014 — Boaters in Cape Cod Bay are urged to use extreme caution due to the unusually high densities of right whales in the area. The whales feed below the surface, making them extremely vulnerable to collisions with ships, warned researchers with the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies along with officials from the state Dept. of Fish and Game.
On April 9, aerial and vessel surveys conducted by Coastal Studies documented approximately 90 right whales throughout the bay. The animals are currently grazing on high concentrations of zooplankton just beneath the water’s surface, making them difficult to see for vessels in their vicinity and even for trained observers. Coastal Studies’ R/V Shearwater, conducting right whale habitat studies last Wednesday, collided with a right whale that surfaced underneath the vessel, which was travelling at a slow speed with several staff on the lookout, the organization reported in a press release.
The extent of wounds was hard to determine, but the whale swam off, lifting its tail fluke, and was lost from sight among other feeding whales, Coastal Studies said.
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