Citing Evidence: Protecting Whales

Learn It Part 2

Now let’s looks at an example to learn more about citing evidence. First take a moment to read through the Newsela article, Protecting Atlantic whales from oil exploration Opens a new window.

In the beginning of the article, the author describes opposing views about oil and gas exploration off the Atlantic Coast.

What evidence in the excerpt below does the author provide to show that there is disagreement about the impact of oil and gas exploration?

aerial photo of a large offshore oil rig with a gas flare

Offshore oil platforms like the one shown are used to extract and process oil from the ocean.

Government officials and the oil and gas industry say the exploration is harmless. Bob Edwards disagrees. He is the mayor of Nags Head, a coastal town on North Carolina's Outer Banks. Edwards is worried about what the intense sound waves can do to dolphins and endangered North Atlantic right whales. There are only about 500 right whales left.

— Newsela, 2014

Click Show Answer to see the highlighted evidence.

Show AnswerHide Answer [Highlighted text begins.] Government officials and the oil and gas industry say the exploration is harmless. Bob Edwards disagrees. [Highlighted text ends.] He is the mayor of Nags Head, a coastal town on North Carolina's Outer Banks. [Highlighted text begins.] Edwards is worried about what the intense sound waves can do to dolphins and endangered North Atlantic right whales. [Highlighted text ends.] There are only about 500 right whales left. Newsela, 2014 The author describes how government officials and the oil and gas industry do not think the exploration will harm animals, while Edwards is concerned about what the sound waves will do to marine animals.

The idea that there is disagreement about the impact of oil and gas exploration is explicitly stated in the text, along with the supporting evidence we identified above. But some ideas, which may not be stated directly, can be inferred from the text and can be supported with evidence.

Read the following excerpt from the article. Consider what the author wants you to understand about the impact of the seismic surveys on marine mammals.

The government approved opening an area of the Atlantic Coast from Delaware to Florida for the blasts. They said there is no scientific evidence that blasts harm marine animals.

Yet even government scientists are worried about what the extreme sound can do to the hearing and communication of whales and other marine life. Many marine animals use sound to find food and mates, and to keep track of their young.

“It’s been pretty well documented that seismic surveys have disrupted animal behavior and animal communication,” said Danielle Cholewiak, a government scientist.

— Newsela, 2014

Even though the text does not explicitly state that the lives of marine mammals are threatened by the seismic surveys, you can make that inference through evidence in the text. Can you find evidence to support the inference that seismic surveys can threaten the survival of marine mammals?

Click Show Answer to see the highlighted evidence.

Show AnswerHide Answer The government approved opening an area of the Atlantic Coast from Delaware to Florida for the blasts. They said there is no scientific evidence that blasts harm marine animals. Yet even government scientists are worried about what the extreme sound can do to the hearing and communication of whales and other marine life. [Highlighted text begins.] Many marine animals use sound to find food and mates, and to keep track of their young. “It’s been pretty well documented that seismic surveys have disrupted animal behavior and animal communication, [Highlighted text ends.]” said Danielle Cholewiak, a government scientist. Newsela, 2014 While the text does not directly state that seismic surveys can threaten the survival of marine animals, the highlighted text provides evidence that can lead you to that idea, and therefore supports that inference. The evidence indicates that there is, in fact, research that documents how seismic surveys disrupt animal behavior and communication. If these surveys interfere with animals’ ability to find food, to reproduce or to take care of their young, then the animals’ survival would be threatened. They may not be able to find food for themselves or their young, which could lead to death, and their population would continue to decrease if they are unable to find a mate to reproduce.

Now that you have seen how to cite evidence for ideas that are both stated directly and inferred, go to the next page to practice this skill on your own.