But at least one major conservation organization questions the effectiveness of proposed new protective measures. The whale's natural life span can be as long as 80 years. Despite their formidable size, right whales are extremely difficult to see in the water, due to their dark color and lack of a dorsal fin. They have a narrow upper jaw, and their heads are marked with light-colored patches of hardened skin called callosities, which are unique to each whale.
Right whales have two separate blow holes, creating a distinctive v-shaped blow.
Right whales spend most of their time in the Gulf of Maine in two of the three areas defined as critical habitat under the US Endangered Species Act. They give birth to their calves off the coasts of Florida and Georgia during the winter months, begin their migration to their New England feeding grounds in February, and remain in the Cape Cod and Massachusetts Bays during late winter and early spring. The whales move on to the Great South Channel in mid to late spring.