All marine mammals and most sea turtles are protected under federal law(s). Reporting important sightings will help officials to monitor these protected populations. What is considered an important sighting? See below for some examples. Make sure for any sighting you note the location and take photos. If possible, stand by an animal in distress until authorities arrive.
To Report Injured, Dead or Entangled Marine Mammals and Sea Turtles in the Northeast US (Maine-Virginia), call NOAA’s hotline: 1-866- 755-6622. Other regions click here for hotline information. NOTE: sightings may always be reported to the US Coast Guard via VHF Ch. 16
ENTANGLED ANIMALS
Whales and sea turtles that become entangled in fishing gear are at risk of severe injury and even death if they are unable to free themselves. There are permitted teams of researchers to carry out the highly dangerous task of attempted to free an animal from entanglement. NOTE: You should NEVER attempt to remove any gear yourself due to risk of injury to both human and whale/sea turtle. Entangled whales are known to thrash violently when they are in distress.
(image: minke whale entanglement netting around the mouth)
DEAD ANIMALS
Being able to account for any dead animals will help make sure their population estimates are as accurate as possible. For endangered species, every individual matters! Depending on the condition, researchers may also want to do a necropsy (animal autopsy) to determine the cause of death and collect other samples. If you see a dead animal, make sure you report the sighting.
Note: whales tend to float belly up when dead due to a build up of gases in their stomachs.
INJURED/VESSEL-STRUCK ANIMALS
At least 1 in 10 humpback whales in the Gulf of Maine alone have scars from a collision with a vessel, however these collisions are hardly ever reported. These strikes can have both short- and long-term impacts, ranging from blood loss and broken bones to chronic infections and even death. This is a threat to all whale species, and it is important for researchers to know when a strike has happened so that they can monitor the affected individual. Often times a whale will have fresh injuries and scars from the spinning propeller of a vessel, as seen below.
ANY RIGHT WHALE SIGHTINGS!
North Atlantic right whales are a critically endangered species. Each sighting gets added to a national database to better track their movements and allow researchers to advise on better protection measures. Even if a right whale appears healthy and perfectly fine, we still want to know about it!
NOTE: It is illegal to approach a right whale within 500 yards (1,500ft). When maintaining this distance, your view of a right whale will look something like this: 
Where and when can you expect to see a right whale? The video below shows all available sightings in the US by month!
PLEASE REPORT ANY OF THE ABOVE SIGHTINGS
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