A team from the Center for Coastal Studies (CCS) untangled a young humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) off the coast of Massachusetts. The whale was caught in fishing gear in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary east of Boston between Cape Ann and Cape Cod. Stellwagen Bank is a hotspot for humpbacks and other whales, who feed on the plentiful plankton and fish in the bank’s rich waters during the spring and summer.
The whale was freed by CCS’ Marine Animal Entanglement Response (MAER) team, who is trained to safely disentangle whales. CCS has freed over 200 large whales and other marine life from entanglements since 1984.
Recreational boaters in the area reported a relatively small whale struggling in the gear’s buoy line. Once the MAER team was on the scene, they found the humpback with ropes wrapped around the base of its tale. The ropes were essentially keeping the whale anchored in place and the whale spent most of its time at the surface.
The process was further complicated by the weather. With winds forecasted to significantly increase, the team had to work quickly and assess the animal’s conditions and attempt disentanglement.
“Approaching from behind, the team used a hook-shaped knife at the end of a 30-foot pole to make a series of cuts to the wraps of rope at its tail, eventually freeing the whale,” CCS wrote in a statement.
Once freed, the whale stayed fairly still at the surface, and the team remained with the humpback until it began to move again. The whale sustained some injuries due to the entanglement, but the team believes that it will recover. The CCS Humpback Whale Studies Program is working to identify the whale using their database.
CCS Mn Response June14
According to the CCS, this rescue is an example of what can happen when several organizations work together. The boaters reported the sighting to the United States Coast Guard, who then contacted the NOAA Fisheries and CCS hotlines. The Massachusetts Environmental Police also responded, as they were in the area when the call came in and stayed with the whale until the MAER rescue team arrived. TowBoatUS also overheard the report and offered to stand by and assist as needed
“It was really great that so many people and institutions helped out in this case. The whale has a much better prognosis due to that,” MAER Assistant Director Bob Lynch said in a statement.
A whale first responder from over 5,000 miles away also assisted. Maria Harvey from the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary happened to be working with the CCS team as part of an ongoing partnership. “It was an honor to help this whale and great to continue the collaboration between our teams,” Harvey added.
Over the past month, this particular whale has been spotted several times by whale watchers in the area. It has several deep but healing wounds from prior entanglements. The International Whaling Commission (IWC) estimates that over 300,000 whales and dolphins die every year due to bycatch and entanglement in fishing gear.
According to CCS, their disentanglement work is supported in part by grants from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (MA-DMF), the Massachusetts Environmental Trust, and private foundations and donors. All disentanglement activities are conducted under a federal permit authorized by NOAA.
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