Whales heard for first time in waters around New York City
For the first time in waters surrounding New York City, the beckoning calls of endangered fin, humpback and North Atlantic right whales have been recorded, according to experts from Cornell’s Bioacoustics Research Program and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
“This is an exciting time for New Yorkers. Just miles from the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building and Carnegie Hall, the great whales are singing,” says Chris Clark, director of the Bioacoustics Research Program at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. “These are some of the largest and rarest animals on this planet trying to make a living just a few miles from New York’s shores. It just goes to show us that there are many important and wonderful discoveries to be made about the living world right here, right in our back yards.”
Right whales feed by skimming the ocean for zooplankton and small crustaceans. Which considering the water quality just off the New York offers some risks to an animal that feeds that way. Still great news that this highly endangered mammal is drifting back to some traditional feeding grounds. The biggest modern risks to them is being rammed by ships in heavily trafficked shipping lanes. Listen for Whales was created to reduce the collisions between whales and ships. They have a great short video of a Right whale on its home page.
Alice to Arafura wildlife corridor planned
The Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife Minister Alison Anderson has promised that 50 per cent of the wildlife corridors linking the Top End to Alice Springs will be complete in four years.
This news from Australia reminded me that one of the big problems in the U.S. with wildlife conservation especially east of the Mississippi River is while we have quite a good amount (though not great) of land set aside as wildlife preserves we lack the corridors to connect them.
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