Wiley on BBC on measures to save whales from ship strikes in Atlantic
Ship strikes
Social communication is necessary so that they can get together for important activities, such as mating, and it is unclear just what the ramifications of cutting off that communication will mean for them.
But the ships are not just disrupting communication; they also collide with whales from time to time.
Dr Dave Wiley who works for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has seen the consequences at first hand.
"Our scientists found shattered bone and large hematomas which are indicative of a ship strike," he told BBC News.
Each year, there are one or two North Atlantic Right Whales stuck by ships in the area. Although that does not sound like a lot, it was enough to concern environmental groups because it is thought that there are just 500 of these animals left in the wild and mothers with calves get hit more frequently.
Whale maps
Dr Wiley and his team worked with the Boston port authorities to find a solution to the problem.
They shared their data of where the whales were and the details of the commercial shipping lanes.
Together, they worked out a new route that would reduce the co-occurrence of whales and ships by 81% and increased the transit time of ships by between nine and 22 minutes.
The new route was accepted by the International Maritime Organization, since when the ships have been using it voluntarily.
Dr Wiley also helped to develop a new iPad application that gives real-time information on the location of whales across the entire East Coast of America so that ships can avoid the large gatherings of the cetaceans.
