What question did this study set out to answer?

To enhance understanding of North Atlantic right whale distribution and minimize human interactions.

March 14, 2026Open Access

North Atlantic Right Whale (Eubalaena glacialis) Passive Acoustic Detections Report: November 2023 – June 2024

Key Points

To enhance understanding of North Atlantic right whale distribution and minimize human interactions.
Utilized long-term moored passive acoustic monitoring.
Focused on identifying presence in coastal and shelf waters.
Analyzed shifts in distribution and migration routes.
Estimated population size at around 380 individuals.
Noted increased collisions and entanglements with human activities.
Identified potential calving grounds and migration routes.

Abstract

The North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) is an endangered baleen whale that primarily occupies coastal and shelf waters of the western North Atlantic Ocean, and has a population size of around 380 individuals (Linden, 2025). In these urban waters, North Atlantic right whales are especially at risk for collisions with vessels and entanglement in fishing gear (Moore et al., 2021). Their distribution has been shifting in recent years (Davis et al., 2017), and improved knowledge of the full extent of their calving grounds and location of their migration route is needed to minimize interactions with human activities. Long-term moored passive acoustic monitoring is an efficient and effective tool for monitoring rare whale presence to understand distribution and occurrence patterns.

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