A North Atlantic right whale known as Division was discovered deceased in U.S. waters after becoming ensnared in fishing equipment. This marks the initial entanglement fatality of 2026 as reported by the Canadian Whale Institute. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) disclosed in a recent press release that an aerial survey team identified a right whale carcass floating about 40 kilometers off the coast of Avon, N.C., on January 27.
Experts from the New England Aquarium confirmed the deceased whale as Division, a four-year-old male. The NOAA release indicated that the whale had a fishing line entangled around its head and mouth, causing severe injuries to its blowhole and upper jaw. North Atlantic right whales, a critically endangered species with fewer than 400 remaining individuals, are primarily threatened by entanglements and vessel collisions in U.S. and Canadian waters, according to NOAA data.
Tonya Wimmer, the executive director of the Marine Animal Response Society, emphasized the significance of such losses for critically endangered species. She highlighted the importance of every individual in the recovery efforts aimed at moving them away from endangered status.
Division’s entanglement was first observed over a month before its demise on December 3, with subsequent assessments revealing deteriorating health due to prolonged entanglement. Efforts were made in December to remove some of the fishing gear, but adverse weather conditions and the whale’s distance from the shore hindered complete disentanglement. Division was last sighted alive on January 21.
The death of Division represents the first documented fatality of a North Atlantic right whale since May 2024, according to the New England Aquarium. Wimmer expressed the distress caused by witnessing the visible effects of entanglement on Division, noting the whale’s dramatic physical decline before its passing.
Due to challenging weather conditions and the whale’s location, retrieving the carcass for a necropsy is deemed unfeasible by NOAA. However, federal authorities will examine the fishing gear recovered from the whale. Records from the New England Aquarium indicate that Division had been previously entangled three times.
North Atlantic right whales are known to frequent Atlantic Canadian waters for feeding purposes. Division was frequently sighted in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in New Brunswick, indicating the species’ movement as ocean temperatures increased. Despite this unfortunate event, there are signs of hope for the species, with more than 21 calves born since the start of the current calving season in November, surpassing the previous year’s total.
Wimmer highlighted the potential for the species to rebound, emphasizing the need to address controllable threats to their survival.
