During 19th century, many nations were hunting heavily humpback whales and the increasing sophistication of weapons caused a great decline in humpback whale population by the beginning of 20th century, reaching alarming levels which are believed to be as low as 700 individuals in the North Atlantic. read more
Humpback whales were decimated by commercial whaling in the 19th and early 20th century. They were one of the first species protected under Endangered Species Conservation Act, the predecessor the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1970. When the ESA was passed in 1973, the humpback whale was listed as endangered wherever found. read more
In 1986, humpback whales were declared Endangered by the IUCN. In 1990, their status was changed to Vulnerable. Because of their resiliency in re-establishing themselves with a worldwide population of at least 80,000, the IUCN reclassified humpback whales in the category of Least Concern as of 2008. read more