Whales

Courtney M. Leonard is the Shinnecock artist behind two Long Island exhibits that amplify Indigenous knowledge to explore climate change — and her connection to whales.

Federal agencies, New York and environmental groups are looking into possible reasons for a recent uptick in whale deaths, most of which were discovered on Long Island and New Jersey beaches.

Democratic U.S. Senators from four states want federal environmental officials to address a spate of whale deaths on both coasts. The request that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration address the issue was made by senators from New Jersey, Connecticut, Oregon and Rhode Island.

For World Whale Day, hundreds of environmental activists and residents rallied for improved protections for marine life and a federal investigation after a dozen whales washed ashore dead in New York-New Jersey.

Over the last month, six humpback and sperm whales have washed up dead between Long Island and New Jersey, a region being surveyed for offshore wind development called the New York Bight. In response, ocean advocacy groups are calling for a federal investigation.

A COVID-19 payment plan for commercial utility consumers in Connecticut expired last month.

Scientists have detected a rare species of whale southeast of New York City, and the federal government is using a voluntary protected zone to try to keep them safe.

Construction will begin to restore Great Meadows Marsh in Stratford.

That number represents an 8 percent decrease from the 2019 estimate, and the lowest population estimate for the species in nearly 20 years, according to the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium, which announced the news today ahead of its annual meeting.

J.D. Allen, host of WSHU's new climate podcast, Higher Ground, speaks with scientist Lesley Thorne about about why whales are moving north so quickly.