Provincetown (United States) (AFP) – After many hours scouring Cape Cod Bay and a few false alarms, those aboard the Research Vessel Shearwater on a bright April day make their first sighting: three North Atlantic right whales, including a rare mother-calf pair. The captain cuts the engines and a trio of marine biologists spring into action, rapidly snapping photos and noting markings that can be used to identify individual animals and track injuries — a vital part of conservation efforts for a species believed to have 336 members. While the whaling that drove them to near-extinction has long…