Tell NOAA Fisheries: Protect critical habitat to save Rice’s whale from extinction!

The Rice’s whale is a unique large whale found only in the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, it’s the only large whale that’s exclusive to the United States.

Unless we act quickly, however, these whales may soon disappear forever. Many of these magnificent animals were killed by the Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010. And today, only about 50 Rice’s whales are left.

They need safe, protected habitat if they’re going to have a chance to recover. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries is proposing to designate critical habitat for Rice’s whales under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and is turning to the public for comments.

We need to raise our voices in support of giving these whales the habitat they need to survive. Don’t wait – add your signature today!

*Defenders will submit your name, city, state and comment to NOAA Fisheries. We will not include your street address. All comments will become part of the public record.

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Defenders of Wildlife

Dear NOAA Fisheries,

I’m writing to support designation of critical habitat for the endangered Rice’s whale in the Gulf of Mexico.

At best, only 50 of these whales are estimated to survive, making Rice’s whale one of the most endangered marine mammals on Earth. Human activities have inflicted significant mortalities on this species, particularly during the catastrophic Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010. The surviving whales now face multiple ongoing threats in the heavily industrialized Gulf of Mexico, including vessel strikes, habitat destruction and degradation from offshore oil drilling, oil spills and oil spill response, anthropogenic noise, marine debris (including plastic pollution), and potential fisheries interaction.

NOAA Fisheries must designate critical habitat that contains the physical and biological features essential to this species’ survival and recovery. This habitat must be managed and protected to encourage these whales’ individual growth, reproduction, social behavior, and overall population growth, including foraging, communicating, rearing calves and migrating.

Thank you for proposing the designation of this critical habitat to ensure the survival and recovery of Rice’s whale. I urge you to finalize a robust, science-based designation as soon as possible.

Sincerely,
{user_data~First Name} {user_data~Last Name}

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