BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhuanet) -- This time the whales won. As of Sunday, large vessels steaming into Boston harbor will shift course to avoid whales in the first change of U.S. shipping lanes to protect an endangered species.

Navigational charts have been reprinted, mariners warned and electronic maps recalculated so that large cargo shipswill travel roughly 4 miles north of their old path in new lanesto avoid parts of the only whale feeding sanctuary in the United States, the Coast Guard and scientists said.

"There is always a balance between uses, and we moved the shipping lanes to protect the whales. This time the whales won," said U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Benjamin Benson.

Prior to the change, ships crossed the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary where humpback, minke, finback and North Atlantic right whales live from March to November.

Commercial ships kill as many as three whales in the 842-square-mile sanctuary that stretches from Cape Cod to Cape Ann every year. So-called vessel strikes are the top killer of whales, according to the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, part of the U.S. government's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"This is a dramatic step based on good science that makes the whales' home safer for them," said Amy Knowlton, a research scientist at the New England Aquarium.

Boston, a busy port since the early 17th century, receives at least three cargo ships carrying containers, oil or liquid natural gas each day, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

(Agencies)