While there are no wrong whales, there certainly are right whales. Amelia Islanders feel a special kinship to North Atlantic right whales. That’s partly because these magnificent sea mammals are an endangered species on the verge of extinction. But it’s also because mother right whales give birth to their calves in the warm waters off the shores of our island home.
To celebrate this unique connection, a new exhibit is opening December 19 at the Amelia Island Museum of History. Called Right Whales of Amelia Island, it’s an interactive adventure for animal lovers of all ages.
Everything about this exhibit is new. From a life-size North Atlantic right whale image to captivating story-telling infographics, children and adults alike will immerse themselves in all that is right with the world, so to speak.
Less than 400. That is the total number of North Atlantic right whales estimated to be alive today. It’s a perilously small population. This powerful exhibit will get you up to speed on the challenges these whales face and what we all can do to help keep them from going the way of the dodo.
How did we get to this treacherous precipice? That’s all part of the exhibit. It’s estimated that there may have been between 9,000 and 21,000 North Atlantic right whales. Their population was decimated when the whaling industry in the nineteenth century met the demand for oil and other whale byproducts. Since then, “Save the Whales” has become an international movement, but their recovery remains fragile.
Today, we know much more about these mysterious animals. For example, in the summer, North Atlantic right whales feed on plankton from New England to Canada. Afterwards, expectant mothers head south, swimming up to 1,400 miles along the east coast of North America. Then, between November and April, many arrive at Amelia Island to give birth.
During this timeframe, if you have a keen eye, you may look out over the ocean and spot a big V-shaped waterspout rising from their two blowholes. How can you tell if it’s a North Atlantic right whale? For one thing, right whales are different from most other whales because they don’t have dorsal fins.
This special exhibition runs exclusively at the Amelia Island Museum of History through April 5. It was created by the Amelia Island Whale Ambassadors (AIWA), local volunteers who try to help our neighboring large marine mammals. Every November, AIWA joins other national conservation groups at the Right Whale Festival on Main Beach to spread the word and welcome the whales back to our area.
The Amelia Island Museum of History is located on South 3rd Street in downtown Fernandina Beach.
The exhibit’s grand opening ceremony on December 19 will start at 6:00 p.m. and be in conjunction with the museum’s “3rd On 3rd” program. For more information, call the museum at (904) 261-7378.
This is our island. These are our whales. Please join us to raise awareness of the plight of the North Atlantic right whales and be a part of the solution.