ENVIRONMENTAL
SPECIAL DELIVERIES
Warm, calming waters off the Treasure Coast
allow right whales to nurture newborns
A North Atlantic right whale, Derecha, and her calf are seen swimming off the coast of Vero Beach in February.
In February, Derecha, a North Atlantic right whale, and
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BY DONNA CRARY
her calf, made news when they were seen swimming
just off of Vero Beach. Every year a few right whales use
the Treasure Coast’s warm waters as a nursery for their
young. Although most spend winters farther north in their
usual calving grounds, enough come down to this area to be
on the lookout.
“It’s one of the most amazing things that you can see in
your life,” says Joel Cohen, wildlife photographer for the
Marine Resources Council. “It literally changes you. You form
this bond, this relationship with them, almost like it’s yours.
To hear a whale breathe — this big momma breath and you
hear this cute calf breath — it’s amazing. I wish everyone
could see and hear it.”
JOE SEMKOW
Legend has it that right whales earned their name because
they were the right or correct whale to kill for their valuable
baleen and blubber. They swim close to shore and when
dead they float to the surface, which made it easier for earlier
whalers to hunt them down — nearly to extinction. Thanks to
the federal Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal
Protection Act, they have made a modest comeback. But
scientists warn that their survival looks grim unless drastic
measures are taken to change the way humans interact with
these giant sea animals.
“We need to be much better at avoiding the mother and calf
relationships that are so critical to their recovery and wellbeing
in the state of Florida,” says Jim Moir, vice chairman of
the Marine Resources Council. >>