More than 20 endangered right whales spotted off Cape Cod beach, harbormaster says
Around 20 to 30 right whales have been spotted off a Cape Cod beach, a local harbormaster said Tuesday.
The right whales were seen at Scusset Beach by the Cape Cod Canal, according to the Sandwich Harbormaster.
The Environmental Police are trying to rescue one of the whales that may be entangled, the harbormaster said Tuesday. The whales have been there for a couple of days.
The North Atlantic right whale is one of the most endangered whales in the world, and only approximately 340 remain, according to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
Marine wildlife experts say the right whales are returning to waters off Cape Cod in larger numbers than in previous years.
Last month, researchers at the Center for Coastal Studies publicly shared images of 80 of the critically-endangered whales in Cape Cod Bay.
The species is protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and Canada's Species at Risk Act.
For more information about right whale research, click this link here.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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