Is the Blue Whale close to extinct?

Answer 1

No Bowhead Whales are not extinct. Extinct means there are none left, they have all died and no more are going to be born.

If you are asking if they are at risk for going extinct then the answer depends on who you talk to.

The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, which is composed of scientists, says as of April 2009 that both the Bering-Chukchi Beaufort and Eastern Canada-West Greenland populations are of Special Concern. This means there is some risk of becoming extinct but it is not imminent.

On the other hand, many Inuit in Nunavut, where hunting the Bowhead Whale is traditional, would claim that the species is making a strong comeback and not at risk of extinction.

Answer 2

Blue Whale populations have declined significantly due to extensive and uncontrolled hunting. Blue whale hunting was banned in 1966 by the International Whaling Commission. But, by 1970 330,000 blue whales had been caught & killed in the Antarctic, 33,000 in the rest of the Southern Hemisphere, 8,200 in the North Pacific, and 7,000 in the North Atlantic. The largest original population, in the Antarctic, had been reduced to 0.15% its original count.

Now that the hunting of these giant animals is banned, their numbers has started to increase and I don't think they will go extinct.