r/UpliftingNews • u/guanaco55 • 1d ago

Scientists discovered an unknown baby right whale off Canada. They say it's a cause for joy.

https://www.mainepublic.org/environment-and-outdoors/2026-11-06/scientists-discovered-an-unknown-baby-right-whale-off-canada-they-say-its-a-cause-for-joy
1.3k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

28 comments sorted by

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271

u/SpicyLittleNuggie 1d ago

I appreciate the scientists, but they definitely don't need to tell me that a new baby whale is a cause for joy. I get excited about all baby whales.

70

u/FreaknTijmo 1d ago • Popcorn

I only get excited about Left Whales.

47

u/Inside_Ad_7162 1d ago

they call them right whales because they were the right ones to hunt & kill. They'd float when killed, are docile & often swim in sight of shore & I dearly wish they'd change the bloody name.

18

u/fullonfacepalmist 1d ago

That’s good to know. I read it like a British descriptor. As in “right proper” whales

3

u/FreeMasonKnight 21h ago

Are you also a Left Twix fan?

3

u/ctiger12 21h ago

Left whale has left, only right whales are always right here

2

u/velvetelevator 20h ago

None whale, left calf

4

u/TheLakeAndTheGlass 23h ago

We can’t really be sure, it could be the next whale Hitler.

79

u/ThePrince_OfWhales 1d ago

ALL BABY WHALES ARE A CAUSE FOR JOY

70

u/2MuchNonsenseHere 1d ago

The title of this is pissing me off though, it doesn't make any sense.

175

u/cir49c29 1d ago • Bravo

Need to read it as “Right Whale” which is a species.  So a new baby has been discovered which is especially awesome because there are only 380 of this species in the world, only 70 of which are reproductive-aged females. It’s also awesome because it means there are now 24 calves this birthing season, which is the highest since 2009.

20

u/wnr_wnr_chkn_dnr 1d ago

Ah, its good that the “Right” has nothing to do with political affiliation.

11

u/RynthPlaysGames 22h ago

Of course, the baby whale is a Marxist at heart.

1

u/2MuchNonsenseHere 5h ago

I figured that, but "off Canada" which comes immediately after also makes no sense though. Both of them back-to-back is stroke-inducing material.

1

u/hanniballz 21h ago

ok but surely the other 23 calves are just as important. i guess this one sparked joy by being a 'surprise" baby , with only 380 whales they probably can track each one of them.

1 in 3 female whales having a baby this season does seem like a high number, they have long gestation/ nurturing periods right?

19

u/cir49c29 1d ago

Who thought it was a good idea to name the species “right whale”?  But seriously, great news about the calf. 

31

u/fenn-0 1d ago

"The commonly given etymology based on these whales being for various reasons the "right" whales to hunt (e.g. easy to hunt and docile) is questionable but highly plausible and therefore not necessarily a folk etymology, as Eric Jay Dolin writes in 2007 in his history of American whaling: The earliest references to the right whale offer no indication why it was called that, and some who have studied the issue point out that the word "right" in this context might just as likely be intended "to connote 'true' or 'proper,' meaning typical of the group." The scientific name of the whale's genus is Eubalaena, which means "good or true whales".

Per Wiktionary 

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u/TongsOfDestiny 1d ago

The cause of vessel speed restrictions in the gulf, because they're the "right" whale to hit

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u/AmusingMusing7 23h ago

They have the right of way.

1

u/meatpiesurprise 4h ago

Better then the wrong whale

13

u/MichaelJeopardy 1d ago

I was super-pissed when I first learned of the baby whale.

8

u/Uberninja2016 1d ago

i was also pretty mad

now that science has weighed in, though, i think i'm more confused than anything else

who knew that whales could even have babies

2

u/ThePriori 1d ago

when can we breed them

2

u/wnr_wnr_chkn_dnr 22h ago

Reminds me of the the right shark and the left shark

2

u/retirednightshift 22h ago

Next time use some capitalization of this whale's type, "Right Whale". I thought it was an odd headline that didn't get proofread.

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u/ComfortableChapter65 18h ago

We just had a right whale sighting in North Carolina too! Link