PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • December 23, 2024
A third endangered North Atlantic right whale has been reported entangled in fishing gear within one week, this time off the coast of North Carolina. Two of the whales are so seriously injured they are expected to die.North Atlantic right whales are approaching extinction, with a primary cause of injury and death identified by NOAA Fisheries to be fishing gear entanglements and vessel strikes in both U.S. and Canadian waters. Maine fishing gear was linked to one of the deaths for the first time in October.