In the online edition of E Magazine, Brita Belli discusses the dangers faced by one of Earth’s most endangered species, the North Atlantic right whale, due to shipping traffic and how scientists and environmentalists are scrambling to save these gentle giants of the ocean:

COMMENTARY: New Steps to Save Right Whales

The huge black form moves under the water, distinguished by a smattering of bumpy white eruptions on its sleek head. It sends up sprays in soft white showers. It pushes out of the water, breaking the surface with tremendous force, flipper raised like a sail, leaving a giant splash as it dives back down, slapping the water with its powerful tail. This is the North Atlantic right whale, an ocean giant that can reach up to 60 feet and 80 tons; a seemingly invincible creature and king of the sea.

But North Atlantic right whales are critically endangered. Less than 350 remain, despite the fact that they’ve been protected from commercial fishing for the past 65 years. Through the 20th century, right whales (so named because they were considered the “right� whale to hunt) were the favorite target of whalers. They swam slowly, lived inland and, due to their thick layer of blubber, floated when killed. From the Basques in the 11th century to European whalers in the 16th century and American whalers hunting the species until it received protected status in 1935, right whales were led to the brink of extinction.

Now scientists are studying those few remaining right whales to determine why their numbers are still on the decline and how technology can be used to help save them.

Right whales travel along an urban coastal zone that stretches from Florida to Canada, and they are at danger at every point from large commercial shipping fleets. According to reports by the Boston-based New England Aquarium, shipping traffic in the busy Mid-Atlantic region resembles congested highways. And it is in these dangerous, crowded lanes that the right whales must bear their calves each winter. Due to national security concerns, the U.S. Coast Guard has refused to issue voluntary speed restrictions. Each time a ship collides with and kills a whale, the species draws closer to extinction. Of the 52 right whale deaths since 1986, the Aquarium’s report says 20 of them (39 percent) were the result of collisions. [full text]

To view a short video produced by National Geographic on this topic, please follow this link.

To sign an electronic petition (sponsored by the Bluewater Network, a division of Friends of the Earth) urging the National Marine Fisheries Service to support “the proposal to slow speed limits for ships over 65-feet to 10 knots in right whale habitat,” please follow this link.