Image

Surfing In

In August 2014, a team that included WHOI biologist Michael Moore was called to examine a decomposing right whale carcass on an isolated rocky beach in Newport, R.I. The team made measurements, collected samples, took photos, and decided to retrieve the skull, which they placed on a raft and towed back their launch site. Here, Nate DiMartino from the International Fund for Animal Welfare guides their prize home. Once back at WHOI’s Marine Research Facility, the skull was washed, weighed and examined before being given to the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, where it is currently on display.(Photo by Michael Moore, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)