The gray whale is the focus of research projects anticipating its eventual return to European waters after an absence of a half-millennium. Youri van den Hurk is preparing for a possible big welcome-home event—the return of the gray whale to European waters after an absence of about 500 years. The gray whale disappeared from the […]
Tag: national marine fisheries service
Federal Judge Restores Endangered Species Protections Gutted by Trump
A federal judge on Tuesday restored a wide swath of Endangered Species Act protections gutted by the Trump administration. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar in Northern California comes as the Biden administration is working on replacement rules for the Trump rollbacks and means the protections will be restored while the review process […]
Deep-sea mining could cause noise pollution radiating 500 kilometers across the ocean and harmful to marine mammals
According to scientists, projected deep-sea mining might cause noise pollution that would radiate through the ocean for hundreds of kilometers, generating a “cylinder of sound” that would go from the surface to the sea bed. One mine’s noise alone could travel 500km (more than 300 miles) in calm weather, according to research by scientists from […]
California Drift Gillnets Entangled About 12 Humpback Whales in 2021
SAN FRANCISCO— After new federal reports estimated that the California drift gillnet fishery caught about 12 Pacific humpbacks in 2021, the Center for Biological Diversity warned the National Marine Fisheries Service today to expect to be sued for failing to protect these endangered whales from entanglements in drift nets. Today’s legal notice points out that […]
Petition: Protect Atlantic Humpback Dolphins
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is currently reviewing a petition to list the Atlantic Humpback Dolphin as Threatened or Endangered Under the Endangered Species Act. Once a species is listed, it becomes eligible for “critical habitat designation.” Then, the federal government works to implement several types of protections. The Fish and Wildlife Service summarizes […]
Whales in Danger in United States Waters
A new opinion piece in The Hill is calling for extra protection for whales in the United States. Kyla Bennett, the science policy director at Public Employees for Environmental responsibility (PEER) called on the current administration to act to save the North Atlantic right whale, Bryde’s whale, and North Pacific right whale. Each of these […]
New Rule on Critically Endangered North Atlantic Right Whales Falls Short
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS) released a new rule at the end of December to reduce the risk to critically endangered North Atlantic right whales. Unfortunately, the rule is inadequate to protect these animals. NFMS’ rule focuses on helping whales that get tangled in fishing gear used for crab and lobster fishing. However, their […]
Atlantic fisheries managers move to protect the little fish seabirds rely on.
Seabirds are often the first thing we see—and hear—on the coast. Flying above the waves, they make up the soundtrack of life on the water. These majestic creatures rely on tiny fish called forage fish for their survival, but they face stiff competition with the large, industrial fishing operators that also harvest these fish. Two […]