MARTHA’S VINEYARD, Mass. (WWLP) – NOAA officials are investigating the death of a North Atlantic Right Whale after it was found on the coast of Martha’s Vineyard.
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On Sunday afternoon, officials received a report of a dead whale on Joseph Sylvia State Beach on Martha’s Vineyard. The International Fund for Animal Welfare and the Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe were able to secure the whale and an autopsy will later determine the cause of it’s death.
A preliminary report found rope wrapped around and embedded into the whale’s tail. Crews were able to collect it for further examination. Due to how the whale was beached on the shore, officials are unable to identify it at this time but it does appear to be a juvenile due to its size.
There are only about 360 North Atlantic Right Whales left in the world with less than 70 females able to reproduce. This is the 37th documented whale death reported since 2017 that has been entangled by fishing gear or hit by a vessel.