A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration crew attempted a rescue Friday, but only managed to slice away about 100 feet of netting before the spooked whale retreated to deeper waters. A large knot of fishing line was trailing about 10 to 15 feet behind the whale.
Advertisement
A few line remained, but SeaWorld said enough was removed that the 40- to 50-foot-long adult whale should survive.
The whale is believed to be the same creature that was seen struggling with ropes several days ago off Santa Barbara, about 75 miles northwest of Los Angeles, said Justin Viezbicke, a NOAA program specialist who was part of Friday’s rescue effort. It was spotted off of San Diego on Saturday morning, and a rescue team from Sea World was called out. The mammal – more than 35 feet long – was swimming close to the whale watching boat Western Pride with almost 90 passengers on board.
The line was coming out both sides of its mouth and passed under the animal’s pectoral flippers. The boat run by Davey’s Locker stayed with the whale until the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Harbor Patrol arrived. “I watch these whales every day, it’s what I do, and to see them entangled and see them stressed; you could just feel their stress when you’re watching them”, said Moore.
The whale rescue team from NOAA has responded to around 50 entangled whales since January – a sharp rise that could have been caused by warmer waters which enticed the enormous creatures nearer to shore, where they come across fishing gear, Viezbicke stated.
Experts are trying to understand how the whales are getting entangled in the lines, he said.
Advertisement
“Our response network is really just a Band-Aid”, Viezbicke said.
