However, the public perception that all large whales are endangered is wrong. Scientists believe there are only 30 North Pacific right whales remaining in the eastern North Pacific today. The North-Atlantic right whale is one of the most endangered of all large whales, with a long history of human exploitation and no signs of recovery despite protection from whaling since the 1930s. Join marine biologists on their expedition to track the remaining populations, and find out what can be done for those that remain. The shift in food availability due to climate fluctuations has already hurt the reproductive rates of the endangered North Atlantic right whale. Many scientists believe that the whale is extinct in the eastern North Atlantic and have been able to survive along the east coast of the U.S. and Canada. According to scientific evidence, blue whales are the largest creatures to dwell on Earth, after the dinosaurs. The truth is that most large whales are no longer commercially hunted and many are recovering from past exploitation—with major exceptions being the North Atlantic and North Pacific right whale (E. japonica) species. North Atlantic Right Whales The North Atlantic right whale got its name because it was an easy target and the "right" whale to hunt. The species got its name as the “right” whale to hunt: these animals swim slowly close … The Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies Killer whales in the “Data Deficient” group (DD), but the reality is that some specific populations are already threatened. It does seem ironic that whales have no natural predators, yet they continue to be endangered. Because these whales travel slowly and spend a lot of time at the surface, they were easy targets. The eastern North Pacific population of right whales is the most endangered large whale population in the world. Hence, the Endangered Species Act of 2005 granted federal protection to killer whales and designated their geographical as protected ‘critical habitat’. Threats To Orcas Or Killer Whales: There are two types of threats faced by killer whales- natural dangers and man-made danger. Hunted since the 11th century, right whales were nearly extinct when they finally received protection from whaling in 1935. The threat of extinction. There are several species, but all are identified by enormous heads, which can measure up to one-third of their total body length. R esearchers are scrambling to figure out why one of the world’s most endangered whale species is dying in “unprecedented” numbers, after at least 10 north Atlantic right whales … Between hunting them for food and sport and destroying their natural environment they are in trouble. But the sad fact is that these amazing creatures were designated as endangered for a long time and there is … North Atlantic right whales were originally pushed to the brink of extinction due to commercial whaling. Even so, the population has struggled to recover as they face mounting modern-day threats from fishing gear entanglements, vessel strikes, habitat loss, and pollution. Sadly, this is due to man and the issues that we have created for them. For whalers they were the “right” whales to hunt. They are an essential part of an ocean ecosystem that … Killer whales are not in the list of endangered species, but they are vulnerable to a number of threats of natural and anthropogenic origin. Whaling was banned (for them) in 1935 but these whales are still disappearing and will be gone forever without immediate protection from current human threats. North Atlantic right whales are one of the most endangered large whale species in the world. These changes can mean whales such as humpbacks and blues may have to migrate much further to reach feeding grounds, leaving them with less time to forage for food. The species got its name as the “right” whale to hunt: these animals swim slowly close to shore and are so blubber-rich they float when dead. No new Northern right whale calves have been born so far this year — an unprecedented occurrence, according to scientists who study them. Right whales are the rarest of all large whales. Right whales are known to form large groups, called surface active groups (or SAGs), in which many males compete for the attention of a female. In the past century, many of the large whale species have been hunted to the brink of extinction by industrial whaling. Studying such a small population is difficult, NOAA Fisheries is continuing efforts to learn more … Hundreds of years of commercial whaling decimated the species by the early 1900s. Whales Endangered and Conservation. Whale Threats WHY ARE WHALES ENDANGERED? Hundreds of thousands of right whales were killed for the whale oil and the numerous other products they provided. Why Are Right Whales Critically Endangered? Understanding Why North Pacific Right Whales Are Endangered. Once common along the eastern U.S. seaboard, the whale was hunted to near-extinction by the 1750s.