Whale Recovery: Most Humpback Populations Removed From U.S. Endangered Species List
In a triumph for the global movement to save whales from oblivion, the U.S. government on Tuesday removed most of the world’s humpback populations from the federal list of endangered species, with some glaring exceptions on the West Coast.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced that nine of 14 groups of whales around the globe have recovered to the point that they no longer qualify as endangered, though the giant mammals will still be protected from human hunting and other threats.
But the whales that feed and cavort off the shore of California, delighting whale-watchers and boosting coastal economies, were not taken off the list, because of ongoing threats posed by vessel collisions and fishing gear entanglements.
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