The Humpback whale which reigned in a protectionist era for endangered species is going to be removed from the list.
As per the proposal by National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, the species would now instead be classified into 14 distinct categories. The species of Central America and Western North Pacific are still being threatened whilst the species off the coast of Cape Verde and Northwest Africa continue to be endangered.
Furthermore, according to ABC News, United States has been an active part of the International Whaling Commission. They had banned commercial whaling in 1966 and the species was categorized as endangered in 1970.
Moreover, whales are protected under the Marine Mammals Protection Act. However, countries like Japan, Norway and Iceland continue to legalize whaling for scientific research. Furthermore,some places in the world reportedly still survive on whaling mainly owing to the aboriginal tribes.
According to Aljazeera America, stringent efforts by global governments have led to the restoration of this magnificent species in its rightful habitat, though the process has taken over four decades.
This stringency has increased the growth rate by about 11 percent for humpback whales. The last time any species moved from the endangered list was almost two decades back.
Rebecca Nolin, the director at Centre for Biological Diversity in Alaska has remarked about her elation on the prospect of whales being removed from the endangered list although she speculates that the efforts might still be premature.
Nolin added that factors such as climate change and ocean acidification affect the whale population at more intensities than what can be anticipated.