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| Tail flukes of right whale #1711's calf off Melbourne Beach, FL on 1/15/17. Photo by J. Albert/MRC |
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| Right whale #1711 with her 3rd calf and a bottlenose dolphin with its calf in the background off Melbourne Beach, FL on 1/15/17. Photo by J. Albert/MRC |
Brevard
County enjoyed its first North Atlantic right whale sightings of the
season this past weekend. Tentatively ID'd as Catalog #1711, this
30-year-old mom
cruised southward
through Satellite Beach Saturday, Jan. 14, 2017 with her 3rd calf. She was spotted
moving through Melbourne Beach waters on Sunday, Jan. 15th and at 6:00 pm was about a
mile north of Sebastian Inlet. FWC officers at the inlet say the pair
spent a few hours west of the bridge during the night, but made it
safely out around 12:25am Monday morning. #1711 gave birth to the first
of 3 calves this season so far. She last calved in 2009. #1711 is one of only 4 adult North Atlantic
right whales known to be in the southeast U.S. right now (3 of which
have given birth, making a total of 7). It's been a very slow season
with few whales, few calves, and with sightings happening later than
usual. So, for those of you who have seen her so far, count your lucky
stars! For those of you who haven't, she was headed south when she left Sebastian Inlet, so she's got to turn around and head north at some point!
Enjoy any
chance you get to see them, but remember to keep your distance. The legal approach limit is 500 yards.
