Joint Resolution of the Georgia General Assembly

Apr. 2, 1985

RIGHT WHALE DESIGNATED AS THE OFFICIAL GEORGIA STATE MARINE MAMMAL.

No. 48 (Senate Resolution No. 91).

A RESOLUTION.

Designating the right whale as the official Georgia state marine mammal; and for other purposes.

WHEREAS, although the State of Georgia has designated flowers, birds, a mineral, a fossil, a fish, a tree, an insect, and a gem as official symbols of Georgia, she has never had a state marine mammal; and

WHEREAS, in 1980, photographers from the Department of Natural Resources discovered and photographed a right whale off the Georgia coast; and

WHEREAS, those photographers were the basis for an expedition to the area by the New England Aquarium, since the whale was familiar to them and known to them as Fermata; and

WHEREAS, the expedition, led by a group of Delta Airlines pilots from Atlanta, again sighted Fermata with a newborn calf and during the expedition sighted 14 more adult whales and four newborn calves; and

WHEREAS, the coastal waters of Georgia were found to be the heretofore unknown calving grounds of the North Atlantic Right Whale, the only known member of the great whale group that is native to Georgia; and

WHEREAS, the discovery of the Georgia calving grounds is one of the most exciting discoveries in the study of marine mammal and will add to the knowledge that is vital to the survival of the species.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA that the right whale is designated as the official Georgia state marine mammal.

Approved April 2, 1985.

Source: Ga. Laws 1985, p. 747.

© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, The University of Georgia

Go to April 2 This Day in Georgia History page

Go to Georgia Symbols page

Go to GeorgiaInfo table of contents