A juvenile humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) entangled in the opening to Alaska’s Endicott Arm was successfully freed after a multi-agency rescue mission. Endicott Arm is a narrow fjord located about 50 miles southeast of Juneau. While remote, it’s a major destination for cruise ships and commercial fishing vessels that can be a risk to whales and other marine wildlife.
According to a statement from NOAA on June 24, several mariners noticed the entangled juvenile whale on the evening of May 10 and reported the sighting to the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Marine Mammal Stranding Network 24-hour hotline. The whale was caught in lines from two commercial Tanner crab pots. Since each pot weighs around 800 pounds, they essentially acted as anchors on the animal, making it unable to move.
The mariners’ alert allowed regional coordinators to develop their response plan in a timely manner. “We formed a network of eyes on the water—vessel crews coordinating real-time updates between one another and relaying them to us,” said NOAA Fisheries Marine Mammal Specialist Suzie Teerlink in a statement. “That communication was critical. It gave us insight into the nature of the entanglement, helped us build a safe response plan, and gave us confidence that we could relocate the whale.”
A response team made up of biologists from NOAA Fisheries, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Marine Mammal program, and local partners from Alaska Sea to Shore mobilized the very next day. They worked over five hours to make four precise cuts that freed the whale from the pots and most of the entangling lines.
“Cutting gear off an animal of this size can be dangerous,” said John Moran, a NOAA research fisheries biologist and advanced responder on the team. “We use long poles fitted with specialized knives to extend our reach. That allows us to cut lines while reducing the risk of being injured by a 40-ton animal.”
The responders are hopeful the remaining will eventually fall off the whale.
Entanglements are a major problem in Alaska. Since 1998, there have been more than 140 confirmed reports of entangled large whales. That number is likely far greater, since many entanglements go unreported. Unable to move, the animals can drown or starve, develop life-threatening infections, and may be hit by vessels.
“We are incredibly grateful to the whale watch community and everyone who reported this entangled whale to the NOAA Fisheries hotline,” said Sadie Wright, Large Whale Entanglement Response Coordinator for the NOAA Fisheries Alaska Region. “The details provided by the public enabled our response team to prepare and execute a safe response to this life-threatening entanglement, leading to a successful outcome.”
