Portland, Maine - The North Atlantic right whale population is dwindling. Though the endangered animal's population decline has slowed, it continues. Scientists say the animal still faces existential threats.

Monday, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium, a group of scientists and ocean life advocates, said that the whale population fell to an estimated 340 last year in their annual population study.

This is a 20-year population low for the animal that's been on the endangered species list for more than 50 years. Right whales were once abundant in the Atlantic, but the commercial whaling era destroyed their population. They were hunted for their meat and oil.

Per the report, Consortium chair Dr. Scott Kraus said, "A lot of hard work has gone into protecting these whales, but the hard truth is it hasn’t been enough."

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According to Heather Pettis, a research scientist in the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, humans are still having a negative impact on the species in decline.

Sarah Sharp, a veterinarian with International Fund for Animal Welfare, said the new numbers "confirm that the species continues to teeter on the verge of functional extinction, and current measures to save it are falling short."

The right whale population is at a 20-year low, but the population was even lower in 1990 when it was 264. But back then, there were more females capable of breeding. A recent study published in the scientific journal Frontiers in Marine Science reported that the biggest challenge facing the whales is the number of females that are capable of breeding appears to be falling.

"We’re still injuring these animals to a point where it’s not just about survival. It’s about health, it’s about reproduction," Pettis told AP News.

The animals are also vulnerable to ship collisions and entanglement in commercial fishing gear, as well as environmental change and warming waters.

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The federal government has crafted new restrictions specifically on lobster fishing in an effort to save the right whales, but the new rules are being fought in court by fishermen.

Still, scientists and ocean advocates like Sharp remain hopeful despite the numbers: "There is hope on the horizon. Solutions do indeed exist," she said.