Rare sea mammal is having whale of a time

One good news story to emerge in recent weeks concerns the rise in population of one of the rarest whales on the planet.

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The North Atlantic right whale now numbers an estimated 384 animals, up eight whales from the previous year, according to a report by the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium.

The whales have shown a trend of slow population growth over the past four years and have gained more than seven per cent of their 2020 population, the consortium said.

It's a welcome development in the wake of a troubling decline in the previous decade.

The population of the whales, which are vulnerable to collisions with ships and entanglement in fishing gear, fell 25 per cent from 2010 to 2020.