MAINE PUBLIC • April 13, 2023
It hasn't been a particularly good year for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Scientists have documented four right whale entanglements so far in 2023, which is a high number for three months. And with a population of fewer than 350 the pressure is on to learn more about how and where the whales are becoming entangled. But despite decades of research, biologists say tracking the species — and developing definitive answers about their encounters with fishing gear — are challenging tasks. And the answers that scientists have developed are often frustrating for New England fishing industries, which say the information has been used to unfairly regulate them.