The Trump administration on the verge of further endangering North Atlantic right whales?

North Atlantic right whales, among the planet’s most endangered mammals and commonly found off Massachusetts, face renewed regulatory risk tied to vessel-strike rules. The Trump administration is exploring potential deregulatory action that could eliminate “slow zones” in areas with heavy maritime traffic, after nearly a decade of federal measures aimed at reducing collisions. Supporters argue whale-detection technology has improved and that relaxing zones would ease economic impacts, while conservationists and researchers warn changes could undo progress and further threaten the fragile population. For 2024, estimates put the number of right whales at about 380, up roughly 2% from 2023, following a low of fewer than 300 in 1990 and a peak near 500 around 2010. Scientists track individual whales through an online catalog, focusing on females; one matriarch has given birth at least seven times since 1982. NOAA Fisheries data cited in the article reports 15 right whales have died from vessel strikes since a 2017 “Unusual Mortality Event.”