It’s taken eight years, but on March 6, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration formally recognized three species of right whales.

“The status review indicates that separating the northern right whale into two different species is warranted in light of the compelling evidence provided by recent studies on whale taxonomy and classification,” NOAA officials said in their ruling document. “Genetic data now provides unequivocal support to distinguish three right whale lineages (including the southern right whale) as separate phylogenetic species.”

The new rule takes effect April 7.

The Center for Biological Diversity played a key role in the new rule, petitioning NOAA Aug. 16, 2005, because it didn’t believe NOAA was moving fast enough.

“The legal protection for right whales has been running about a decade behind the science,” said Brendan Cummings, oceans program director of the Center for Biological Diversity. “Several years back, scientists doing genetic work clearly proved what others had suspected for a long time.”

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