Whale watchers in New York and New Jersey have documented their 500th individual humpback whale in local waters, a milestone they said highlights the creatures’ growing role in the local ecosystem. St. Lawrence said those markings are “ as unique to each individual as our fingerprints are to each individual person.” When Gotham Whale first launched the cataloging effort, the network was spotting between 10 and 30 new humpback whales each year. Federal authorities have declared an ongoing “unusual mortality event” for humpback whales along the Atlantic Coast, dating back to 2016. We see animals hanging out in the shipping lanes,” St. Lawrence said. “