One of the world’s rarest whales, found exclusively in the Gulf of Mexico, faces an existential threat from proposed oil and gas drilling expansions championed by the Trump administration. Scientists fear these plans could push the giant mammal to extinction.
Endangered Rice’s whales spend their entire lives in the Gulf, making them highly vulnerable to vessel strikes, noise pollution, oil spills, and climate change – all of which are predicted to intensify with increased drilling activity, according to experts.
