North Atlantic right whale head patterns (IMAGE)

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North Atlantic right whale head patterns

Caption

A North Atlantic right whale in Cape Cod Bay. The callosity patterns on each whale's head are unique and allow for identification, along with tracking of impacts such as entanglements and vessel strikes, reproductive histories, and ages of individual whales.

Credit

Photograph by John Durban (NOAA) and Holly Fearnbach (SR3), authorized by NMFS research permit #17355.

Usage Restrictions

Photographers and permit information must be included.

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