Chéticamp, Nova ScotiaHer skin is smooth and matte black, and it feels like spongy rubber when I press my finger into it. In the deep bow of her mouth, long plates of baleen are so straight and even that they seem unnatural. Named by researchers for the scars on her head that evoke dashes and commas, Punctuation measures 50 feet long and weighs ten times more than a grown elephant. Her sheer scale defies the possibilities of natural creation.

Alive, North Atlantic right whales are social, playful animals. With their gaping mouths, rotund bodies, and stout pectoral fins, they’re charming—in an otherworldly, prehistoric sort of way. Still impressive in stature, Punctuation is nonetheless a shadow of her former self. Her body, spotted