LITCHFIELD BY THE SEA, S.C. —

The first aerial sighting of a mom whale and her calf has been reported off the South Carolina coast.

The Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute's aerial survey team located Champagne and her calf east of Litchfield by the Sea in South Carolina on Nov. 28.

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The Institute says this is the first aerial sighting of a mom and calf right whale pair in the Southeast for the 2025-2026 season.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, taken under NOAA permit #26919. Funded by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Champagne is 17 years old and this is her 2nd documented calf.

Her first calf, named Wall-E, was born in 2021.

According to

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