Nova Scotia Whale Population Upgraded to Endangered Status; Oil and Gas Exploration Implicated

In its most recent report, the federal Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) designated the Nova Scotia population of the Northern Bottlenose Whale as Endangered. Previously, this whale was considered a Species of Special Concern, but in November 2002 the Committee upgraded the whale population to Endangered status, the most serious risk category a species can face short of extinction. COSEWIC cited declining habitat quality as a major threat to the whale population, and implicated the oil and gas industry in this decline.