It may already be too late to save the North Atlantic right whale, the state’s official marine mammal, whose numbers have plummeted dangerously since 2011.

But their slim hope of survival as a species could hinge on the creative use of technology in the lobster fishery — ironically a major factor in their recent accelerating decline.

After centuries of being hunted for oil, the biggest threat to right whales today is entanglement in pot fishing gear, both inshore and offshore. In New England that translates mostly to lobster fishing gear.

In a vivid presentation to a gathering in the Gazette newsroom Tuesday night, Dr. Mark Baumgartner, a marine scientist with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and a noted expert on right whales, explained how technology has led to improvements in the strength of rope used by pot fishermen. But what has been a boon to lobstermen has been perilous for the whales, who become entangled in the high-strength rope and cannot break free.

Mr. Baumgartner showed photographs of whales caught in ropes that only grew tighter as the whales struggled against them. Some were already scarred from previous entanglements or ship strikes. One died after it was nearly cut in half.

He told the story of a right whale who dragged an enormous snow crab pot from the Bay of Fundy in Canada to Florida.

Entanglement is also a factor in plummeting birth rates among right whales. Healthy females of reproductive age that become entangled suffer from stress, and often are unable to put on enough weight to bear calves.

The statistics are alarming: only five right whale calves were born in all of last year and so far this year no calves have been found in southern waters where the whales bear their young. This, in a population that had 17 confirmed deaths last year alone.

Far from blaming the fishermen, Woods Hole scientists are working with them to aggressively develop and test digital systems that could allow them to work their fixed gear using sensors instead of rope. The so-called ropeless technology is ready to become reality, but funding is needed for pilot programs to test these new and emerging technologies for fishermen.

As a bridge to the future, some have proposed bringing back so-called “weak” rope in the interim while the technical and cultural shift to a new way of fishing spools out.

Other hopeful efforts are under way. Scientists, fishermen and nongovernmental organizations have all begun to come to the table to find collaborative solutions, said Mr. Baumgartner, who heads a national consortium on right whales.

That seemingly modest changes in human behavior can have a measurable impact on the whales was illustrated by a change in shipping regulations. While ship strikes were formerly a major factor in whale mortality, regulations that restricted speeds in certain shipping lanes have reduced the death rate from collisions.

Scientists who study the critically endangered animals, population now about four hundred and fifty, say the animals could be gone in a generation if things stay on their present course.

The deck has been stacked against the whales for more than three centuries, beginning in the 1700s when they were hunted for their valuable oil. Because they swim close to shore, are slow-moving and float after they are killed, they were said to be the “right” whales to hunt, thus earning their name.

In a frank, but also inspiring talk, Mr. Baumgartner gave pause for thought. We could stand by and let right whales go extinct, sometime in our children or grandchildren’s lifetime. But what would that say about our own species?

Even if it ultimately fails, making the effort to collaborate with fishermen to save a species that supported our forefathers for many years seems like the right thing to do.