Why are the whales back in New York?

Dr. Howard Rosenbaum describes the research being done by the Ocean Giants Program and how a fish may have led to the return of whales to the area.

Xochitl Garcia
Science Friday Spoonfuls
3 min readOct 12, 2017

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Vocabulary: wildlife conservation, marine life, acoustic monitoring buoy, surveys, tissue sample

Next Generation Science Standards: LS2.C-Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience, SEP2-Developing and Using Models, and CCC2-Cause and Effect: Mechanism and Explanation. Can be used to approach MS-LS2–1, MS-LS2–3, MS-LS2–4, HS-LS2–1, HS-LS2–4, HS-LS2–6, and HS-LS2–7.

Common Core State Standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.6.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.9–10.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11–12.1

A humpback whale slapping its tail on the surface (an activity called lobtailing). Credit: Image taken under NMFS MMPA/ESA Permit №14809.

Within sight of the famous New York skyline, you might see something unexpected — whales. Vast schools of menhaden baitfish swirl in the New York Bight, just a few short miles from downtown Manhattan, luring numerous whale species to feed.

Although breathtaking sights like these were unheard of just a decade ago in the waters off New York City, scientists say they signal a wildlife resurgence underway. Howard Rosenbaum, senior scientist for the Wildlife Conservation Society, explains why the whales have returned and how researchers are tracking the phenomenon in real time.

Note: The minke whale photo in this video is actually a subspecies called the dwarf minke whale, which is not found in New York waters.

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Questions

  • Why are whales back in the New York Bight?
  • When doing a boat-based survey, what visual cues might indicate the presence of a whale?
  • Why do you think the project uses both acoustic monitoring and boat-based surveys? What might be the advantages and drawbacks of each survey method?
  • Why does Dr. Rosenbaum attribute the whale’s return to good fisheries management?
  • How might noise associated with shipping and other activities affect wildlife? How would you propose scientists study the effects of that noise? What kind of data would you suggest they collect.

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Xochitl Garcia
Science Friday Spoonfuls

Education program assistant @scifri and 2015 #grosvenorteacherfellow @NatGeoEducation. #STEM Educator obsessed with food and board games.