10th North Atlantic right whale calf of the season spotted off South Carolina

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service is celebrating the arrival of a new baby North Atlantic whale after it was spotted with its mom off South Carolina.NOAA identified the mom as 31-year-old Palmetto who last gave birth in 2009. This is her fifth calf.READ MORE: Further measures coming to protect endangered right whales, minister saysIn early February, three new North Atlantic right whale calves were also spotted off the coasts of Florida and Georgia.“Any calf is a good sign. We count each one as a sign of hope. [But] we need a lot more,” Philip Hamilton, research scientist at the New England Aquarium, told Global News in January.READ MORE: Fourth North Atlantic right whale calf of the season already injuredThe fourth North Atlantic right whale calf of the 2019-2020 calving season has been spotted off the coast of the United States — but officials say it’s already been injured, likely by a vessel.The birth of any right whale is considered significant in the ocean conservation movement as the species remains critically endangered, with approximately 411 whales remaining.—With files from Alexander Quon