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How long do right whales live? Nearly twice as long as previously thought

By Brendan Rascius, The Charlotte Observer
Published: January 3, 2025, 5:58am

Southern right whales can live to be more than 130 years old — which is decades longer than previously thought, according to new research.

The marine animals, a type of baleen whale found in the southern hemisphere, have the gift of “extreme longevity,” according to a study published on Dec. 20 in the journal Science Advances and an accompanying news release.

The study holds major implications for the species, which was hunted extensively until the mid-20th century and is now considered endangered.

To reach their conclusion, researchers pored over photo identification data collected over the course of four decades.

Data from southern right whales and North Atlantic right whales, a subspecies that live along the east coast of North America and is also endangered, was used.

The researchers found that southern right whales — which were once believed to live up to 80 years — can in fact live longer than 130 years, and possibly as long as 150 years.

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