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(CNN) – A North Atlantic right whale calf was discovered dead off the coast of a barrier island off North Carolina on Friday, according to authorities.
The right whale is one of the rarest marine mammals in the world, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with only about 400 of them left.
The male newborn was found on the beach of the North Core Banks, part of the Cape Lookout National Seashore. Preliminary reports indicate that the animal died during or shortly after birth, according to NOAA. The scientists performed a necropsy on the animal and took DNA samples to determine the calf’s mother.
This is the beginning of the right whale calving season, which begins in mid-November and runs through mid-April. NOAA called this death a “devastating” start to the season.
“Every new right whale calf brings much hope for this critically endangered species, and losses like this have a substantial impact on its recovery,” NOAA said in a news release Monday. “Its population has experienced a significant decrease and a high mortality of youth and adults in recent years.”
There was no indication of human interaction as a factor in the calf’s death, according to NOAA. This species of whale has been experiencing an Unusual Fatality Event for the past three years, according to NOAA. Since 2017, the organization has documented at least 32 whales killed and 13 seriously injured.
“This represents more than 10 percent of the remaining population,” according to a NOAA news release.
The leading cause of whale deaths and injuries involves human interaction, including boat crashes and entanglement in fishing gear.
NOAA released a press release Monday, the same day they announced the calf’s death, warning boaters to be vigilant as the whales migrate nearly 1,000 miles along the Atlantic coast.
The organization urges boaters to be vigilant, slow down and give these endangered whales plenty of room. They also ask all fishermen to remove their unused equipment from the ocean to help avoid entanglement, according to the statement.
Decrease in the female population
The calving season is extremely important for the species to regain its population. The female right whale population is declining due to boat entanglements and strikes, according to NOAA. There are only about 100 females left.
Right whales don’t reach reproductive maturity until they are 10 years old, according to Oceana, a nonprofit ocean advocacy group. And they typically only produce one young after a one-year pregnancy every three to five years. But NOAA has noted that now, on average, females have young every six to 10 years.
One of the reasons biologists believe females are calving less often, according to NOAA, is the additional stress entanglements put on whales.
There were only 22 births, which is about a third of the average annual birth rate, in the last three delivery seasons, according to NOAA.
A report from Oceana last year, researchers warned that the species will soon become extinct unless something is done to save it.
This story was first published on CNN.com. A rare species of dead whale on land in North Carolina
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