MBL Falmouth Forum: “The Changing Face of Whale Trauma: What We Know and Have to Do” – Michael Moore

Large whales have suffered at the hand of man for millennia: by intent with harpoons, and recently by mistake through vessel collisions, and fishing gear entanglements. This has affected both the status of populations, and the welfare of individuals. The latter most especially, where larger species, such as North Atlantic right whales, have the power to swim off with entangling gear, whose deleterious effects can take months to be lethal. In this talk Moore will discuss how he, as a veterinarian and a scientist, and his colleagues have used diagnostics, energetics, therapeutics, and photogrammetric health assessment to gain this understanding. He will also lay out the steps they are taking, collaboratively with the fishing industry, to enable both the industry and the animals to prosper.

Michael J. Moore is a veterinary scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He has studied the effects of trauma from the shipping and fishing industries on North Atlantic right whale (NARW) survival and welfare. He is currently assessing NARW health using aerial photogrammetry and working with a group of stakeholders to establish ‘On-Demand’ fishing systems as a viable tool to remove entangling line from the water column.