North Atlantic Right Whale
Eubalaena glacialis
- Class
- Mammal
- Rarity
- Epic
- Observations
- 312
- Most observed in
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Conservation
- Critically Endangered
Description
The North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus Eubalaena, all of which were formerly classified as a single species. Because of their docile nature, their slow surface-skimming feeding behaviors, their tendencies to stay close to the coast, and their high blubber content (which makes them float when they are killed, and which produces high yields of whale oil), right whales were once a preferred target for whalers. At present, they are among the most endangered whales in the world, and they are protected under…
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “North Atlantic right whale”.