Multimedia Items
Lobster traps and right whales
Lobster traps and right whales. (Illustration by Eric S. Taylor, © Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
Read MoreA win for lobstermen and right whales
A study from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution found a win for New England’s historic lobster fishery and for endangered right whales. Researchers Hannah Myers and Michael Moore show that even with less gear and a shorter season, fishers in Canada, Maine and Massachusetts caught about the same number of lobsters with much less effort. A change in regulations could protect whales and make the lobster fishery more profitable in the long term.
Read MoreNorth Atlantic right whale population leveled off in 2022
That’s the number of North Atlantic right whales on this planet, according to a report released on October 23, 2023 by the New England Aquarium via the North Atlantic Right…
Read MoreSwim alongside a Right Whale and her calf
On Monday, March 27, 2023, Spindle, an approximately 41-year-old North Atlantic right whale, was spotted in Cape Cod Bay with her calf. A new video from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, New England Aquarium, and Whale & Dolphin Conservation, shows the calf suckling, or feeding, as it swims under its mother.
Read MoreCollaborating to Save the Right Whale
Fishermen, engineers, and scientists are working together to test and develop fishing gear that has no buoy lines in the water column to save the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale. There are less than 400 North Atlantic Right Whales left in the world and many right whale deaths can be attributed to entanglement.
Read MoreRare drone video shows critically endangered North Atlantic right whale surface active group
During a joint research trip on February 28 in Cape Cod Bay, Mass., WHOI whale trauma specialist Michael Moore, National Geographic photographer Brian Skerry, and scientists from New England Aquarium, witnessed a remarkable biological event: North Atlantic right whales in a surface active group, also known as a SAG.
Read MoreOcean Encounters: Saving the North Atlantic Right Whale
The North Atlantic right whale is one of the most endangered whales in the world, with an estimated 366 left on the planet. These animals are often found on the Continental Shelf of the East Coast of North America, making them vulnerable to human activities including fishing gear entanglements. In recent years, more whales have died than have been born. Join us as we examine the top threats facing North Atlantic right whales, and discuss the crucial efforts by the scientific community, fishing industry, and policymakers to develop the most effective and viable solutions to ensure the long-term survival of this critically endangered species.
Read MoreCalling All Whales
In 1949, WHOI biologist William Schevill (right) and his wife Barbara Lawrence used a crude hydrophone and a dictating machine to record beluga whales from a small boat in the…
Read MoreListening for Whales
WHOI Biologist Mark Baumgartner recovers a robotic glider after it helped find several endangered North Atlantic right whales. The glider was equipped with a digital acoustic monitoring (DMON) instrument developed at…
Read MoreEavesdropping on Whales
Retrieving a mooring off Nomans Land, an island near Martha’s Vineyard, are (from left) WHOI engineering assistants Steve Murphy and Jeff Pietro, and Tioga crew member Ian Hanley. The mooring was equipped…
Read MoreEavesdropping on Whales
Nick Woods and Sophia Merrifield, students in the MIT/WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography, prepare to deploy a profiling float equipped with acoustic sensors that “listen” for whales and a suite…
Read MoreRight Whale Ecology and Conservation
WHOI biologist Mark Baumgartner attaches an archival suction-cup tag to a North Atlantic right whale while the NOAA Ship Delaware II stands ready to begin environmental sampling in proximity to…
Read MoreLooking Out for Whales
WHOI engineering assistants Jim Dunn (center) and Jim Ryder (right) and a member of the crew of the research vessel Connecticut deploy a right whale autodetection buoy in Massachusetts Bay…
Read MoreEavesdropping on Whales
Bill Schevill, left, founded the field of marine mammal bioacoustics just after World War II. When Bill Watkins, right, joined him at WHOI in 1958, they began what current WHOI…
Read MoreBuoying Whales
WHOI engineering assistants Kris Newhall, Will Ostrom, and Mike McCarthy prepare to deploy buoys during the North Atlantic Right Whale Monitoring Project in Cape Cod Bay in 2004. (Photo by…
Read MoreTogether For Science
It all starts with one drop, one insight, one eureka moment that can ripple across the planet. Every atom, particle, and molecule means we’re connected. Every step we take, every discovery we make, shapes our future. When faced with uncertain times, we turn to science for answers. And this is an uncertain time. Will our leaders rise to the challenge of climate change? Will we have the vision and the technical prowess to end hunger through sustainable fishing and farming of the ocean? Will rising seas consume our coastlines? Will understanding outpace industrialization in time to save coral reefs, right whales, and threatened ecosystems around the globe? For more than 90 years, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has been on call for our oceans. Driving discovery and providing the fundamental knowledge needed to respond to disasters, shape enlightened policies, and inspire individual action. It starts with one drop. One insight. One moment. Advancing together for uncertain times. Together for science. Together for our ocean, our planet, and our future.
Read More2021 Year in Review
Re-live the best of 2021 with this montage showcasing just some of WHOI’s ocean science, technology, and engineering highlights. WHOI researchers are active in upwards of 800 projects around the world at any time, providing critical information about some of the most urgent challenges facing humanity and the planet we call home. As part of the WHOI community, we thank you for your dedication to our ocean, our future, and our planet. Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2022!
Read MoreWe are all Whalers: a reading and conversation
Join us for a virtual conversation and book reading with author and WHOI veterinarian and marine scientist, Dr. Michael Moore, to celebrate the publishing of his book, “We Are All Whalers.” Moore shares his experiences caring for endangered whales and how we can all aid in the salvation of these imperiled animals.
Read MoreEndangered Species Day
Today is Endangered Species Day, and among the most endangered animals are North Atlantic right whales. Fewer than 450 remain. Above, WHOI biologist Michael Moore (red jacket) and David Taylor,…
Read MoreBird’s-Eye View on Whale Health
Scientists used a remotely controlled hexacopter to take detailed aerial photographs of endangered right whales and to collect samples of their “blow”—the spray whales exhale out of their blowholes. In the past, researchers…
Read MoreScience by Drone
WHOI biologist Michael Moore is leading a collaborative project to study the health of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales using drones. SR3 researcher Holly Fearnbach (left) and NOAA researcher…
Read MoreSwift and Steady
Earlier this year, scientists and crewmembers aboard the R/V Tioga retrieved an underwater mooring from Nomans Land, a small island south of Martha’s Vineyard near the Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Observatory…
Read MoreTangled Up
Entanglement in fishing gear is the leading cause of death for endangered North Atlantic right whales. When whales become tangled in fishing gear, such as buoys, and lobster and crab…
Read MoreDrag Testing
MIT-WHOI Joint Program student Julie van der Hoop (left), David Morin (center) of NOAA Fisheries, and Michael Moore, director of the Marine Mammal Center at WHOI, prepare to deploy gear from…
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