Lobstermen take part in right whale survey

First published in the MLA Newsletter, January, 2012

Standing on a dock at 4:00 a.m. is a regular practice for MLA Board members Bobby Ingalls of Bucks Harbor and Mike Myrick of Cushing. Early on December 13 we all stood at the Southwest Harbor dock waiting to board the 112-foot catamaran Friendship V, bound for Jordan Basin in search of North Atlantic right whales. As the boat steamed out in rough, choppy seas, Dr. Moira Brown, senior scientist at the New England Aquarium (NEA) explained to the team — approximately 20 scientists and researchers — that the survey trip was funded by the Canadian Wildlife Foundation. Two weeks earlier aerial surveys had spotted right whales in Jordan Basin and Cashes Ledge so the vessel would spend the day covering both areas.

Previously scientists were unsure where right whales mated. In the last few years, however, groups of right whales were discovered congregating in Jordan Basin and Cashes Ledge during the winter months, prompting researchers to hypothesize that these areas were where some whales spend the winter and mate.

Once the sun came up, a team of researchers stood on the top deck with cameras and binoculars to search for and photograph the whales. Also participating were volunteers from the Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation (GOMLF), Allied Whale, and the College of the Atlantic. After three hours the first whale spout was sighted, appearing as a spray on the horizon. We set off at 16 knots in pursuit. Most vessels are prohibited from pursuing whales, but the Friendship V has a special federal research permit that allows it to pursue and get closer to right whales than the normal maximum of 500 yards.

Once we were near the whale, it appeared to be feeding just below the surface with its rostrum (head) and back breaking through the ocean surface. Then it spent several minutes exposed at the surface which allowed the team to take photographs. Photos are used to identify known whales and to provide information about previously unseen whales. Scientists can identify a right whale by its callosity pattern, a series of unique markings on the head of the whale, similar to a human finger print. Each whale has its own callosity pattern which develops in the first few years of its life. The photos are collected by NEA and used to assess the right whale population.

As the day progressed, Bobby Ingalls and Mike Myrick proved to be keen sighters, yelling out when they saw sign of a whale. “After years of hunting for buoys in calm and rough seas, it’s easy to see changes in the water surface,” Ingalls explained. Zack Klyver, from Bar Harbor Whale Watch, explained that the most notable feature of a right whale is its V-shaped spout, a shape created only by right whales produce. After sighting a fluke breaking the water surface, a whale typically will dive for between six and twenty minutes.

Whale photographs were taken by the researchers and cross-referenced against binders of previous photographs and hand-drawn callosity patterns kept by NEA allowing us to review the detailed records made over the last thirty years. It’s amazing to see such in-depth information for each individual whale. One of the whales we sighted had previously been entangled in gear and shed it on its own. Researchers also noted the condition of each whale sighted, including any new scars acquired as a result of gear entanglements or ship strikes. The level of detail associated with each whale and the time invested in documenting it was extensive.

We were lucky to view a whale logging (resting) at the surface. It allowed the researchers to make thorough photographic documentation of this individual. Ingalls and Myrick spent twenty minutes watching the logging whale with the crew. Myrick commented that it was amazing to see this kind of whale behavior. “The first thing that popped into my mind when we saw the whale logging was how likely it would be for a ship to strike it. We got really close and the whale never moved. In sea conditions like this if we hadn’t had multiple people looking for whales you would never have seen it,” he said.

By mid-afternoon, the boat turned toward Cashes Ledge. The winter wind picked up and cut through our layers of clothes. At Cashes Ledge we quickly spotted the first surface active group (SAG), with two to four spouts coming from one area. A SAG occurs when two or more right whales are in an area together and typically are touching. There is usually one female in a SAG, vocalizing to attract males.

Sightings of right whales began coming from all sides of the boat “Two o’clock off of the bow, half a mile off!” a volunteer yelled. The boat entered a large group of whales which surrounded us in all directions up to three miles away. “This is the jackpot of the day!” a happy volunteer said. The team focused on identifying multiple smaller clusters of whales. Despite the freezing cold wind, the people aboard reveled in the next hour of sightings. The quickly fading daylight meant that we were unable to pursue all the whale clusters. As the sun went down the boat turned away from the last two visible whales to head back to harbor, 81 miles away.

This was the first time that Ingalls or Myrick had ever seen a right whale. The scientists were surprised that they had never encountered one before, but the two lobstermen explained that they never fish this far offshore. “The fact that fishermen can experience this focused effort and get to understand what a right whale survey looks like and to see the animal in its natural environment is very important. I hope they take this back to their communities,” said Laura Ludwig of GOMLF.

During dinner we had an animated conversation about the day’s work. Both Myrick and Ingalls expressed gratitude for the chance to participate in the survey. “Anyone who fishes should have the opportunity to see these whales and the process of identifying them,” Myrick said. Zack Klyver echoed Myrick’s sentiments. “I think it is incredibly important for the Maine fishermen who are being affected by the whale rules to actually see the right whales and know it is a legitimate issue. It is just great to have the guys be able to talk with the right whale scientists, to see them actively conducting research, and realize that they can identify each right whale by name.” The NEA team announced that we had seen twenty-three right whales that day, eighteen of which researchers were able to identify.