Badly wounded Right Whale spotted off coast

28 January 2011, By Alissa Irei, ABC News, Charleston

Charleston, S.C. (WCIV) -- The picture, taken by marine researchers off the coast near Beaufort, shows the back of a Right Whale – shredded by a propeller blade. The animal is highly endangered.

"They're called Right Whales because whale hunters thought the were the right whale to hunt," said Katie Zimmerman of the Coastal Conservation League.

What once made it an easy target for hunters now makes the Right Whale a hard-to-see unintended target for ships.

"They swim near the surface," said Shelley Dearhart of the South Carolina Aquarium. "They're slow moving. They're pretty close to the shore."

The East Coast of the U.S. has the highest rate of whale strikes, according to Zimmerman. She says this injured whale is an important reminder to boats and ships to slow down and be on the lookout.

Experts say if the whale does survive, he'll have significant scarring for the rest of his life. And that, unfortunately, he wouldn't be alone.

"About 75% of the population of the population of North Atlantic Right Whales have some sort of either fishing entanglement scarring, or scarring from fish strikes," Dearhart said.

That's a bad percentage, considering experts say there are only about 400 Right Whales left in the North Atlantic. They're hoping that number doesn't drop by one more ...

"If that scar tissue hardens, which it will, it might cause problems with swimming," Dearhart said. "Just because it's not very elastic anymore."

Whales this badly injured aren't often seen again. But, some good news, researchers say this whale was moving normally – making them hopeful he will beat the odds.

Source: http://www.abcnews4.com/Global/story.asp?S=13923856

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