April 1, 2016 — BARNSTABLE, Mass. – The Division of Marine Fisheries is urging boaters to use caution and be on the lookout for endangered North Atlantic right whales in Cape Cod Bay.
The whales have congregated in large numbers in the Bay earlier than normal. The endangered whales usually do not arrive in the bay until late April.
An aerial survey by the Center of Coastal Studies in Provincetown on Sunday spotted 85 of the whales, which is almost 20 percent of the entire world population.
“If they are there it is definitely food related,” said Erin Burke, a protected species biologist for the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. “And they are feeding right now.”
The whales are feeding at or just below the surface which puts them at risk of being struck by boats. The Division of Maine Fisheries is asking vessel operators in the bay area to reduce speeds to less than 10 knots and to post lookouts to avoid collisions.
Federal and state law also prohibits boats from approaching within 500 yards of a right whale. Operators that find themselves within 500 feet of a right whale should slowly and cautiously leave the area.