Protect Our Oceans

Right whales spotted diving in Hudson Canyon

Right whales visit the East Coast's largest underwater canyon, found off the New Jersey coastline.

Oceans

A right whale dives in Hudson Canyon

Sometimes, you find things where you least expect them. That was true this May for NOAA’s Large Whale Aerial Survey team, which spotted 45 North Atlantic right whales diving in the waters around Hudson Canyon.

While Hudson Canyon has long been considered a hotspot for ocean life, scientists were surprised to find the whales around New Jersey during the late spring. Normally, we expect the whales to have already migrated north to New England and Canadian waters, where we have thought the species likes to feed in the summer.

But these whales had done the reverse: many of the individuals scientists identified had already been spotted in New England earlier in the year, and had turned around and gone south to hang out in Hudson Canyon.

Why? We’re not totally sure, but they probably found some food in the area.

It’s a good reminder that, for this endangered species, changing ocean temperatures mean changing behaviors. That’s why we’re working to update boat speed rules to protect them from vessel strikes along their new migration routes–and so that NOAA has better tools to respond when the whales show up in exciting and unexpected new places.

It’s also why we’re advocating to better protect ocean hotspots, like Hudson Canyon and Cashes Ledge, which draw in amazing and at-risk species throughout the year.

We want to do anything we can to make these spots a little more hospitable to whale hangs for years to come.

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