A humpback whale that lost its tail and was spotted in the inland waters of Washington state likely lost its iconic fins after becoming entangled, possibly in some type of line or fishing gear, experts say. The loss of its fins, used for propulsion, would seem like a death sentence for the creature, last reported seen in late July.
Jessica Farrer, director of research at the Whaling Museum on Washington’s San Juan Island, was among those who responded to the July 23 whale sighting on a nearby island. The institute, as part of its work, helps respond to reports of stranded or endangered marine mammals and educates boaters on best practices for whale watching. Farrer had seen injured humpbacks before, but not anything like this. She described the sight of the whale as painful.
It was seen in the labyrinth of inland waters between Washington state and British Columbia called the Salish Sea.
There have been no other sightings of the whale since that day, she said.
“Everybody gets emotional when they witness a humpback whale dive, and you see these huge 16-foot-wide flukes, and here’s this whale, he just missed it. It’s like we lost our legs,” Farrer said.
Experts with whom photos and videos of the whale were shared concluded that it likely lost its tail due to entanglement, she said. But it is not known exactly what he was involved in.
One of the dangers humpbacks face is entanglement in fishing gear such as mooring lines, pots and nets, according to NOAA Fisheries. Other threats are being hit or harassed by ships or boats and the potential impacts of climate change on their food supply.
Evidence suggests that most humpback whales become entangled at some point but often manage to free themselves, the agency said. The number of whales that die after becoming entangled is unclear.
There were 16 confirmed humpback entanglements off the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California last year, NOAA Fisheries statistics show. In 2016, the number of confirmed humpback entanglements exceeded 40, a year when the end of California’s Dungeness crab fishing season likely meant there was more fishing gear in areas where the whales congregate, the agency said.
Justin Viezbicke, a whale entanglement responder and stranding coordinator for NOAA Fisheries in California, said there have been periodic sightings — perhaps every year or two — of a whale along the West Coast seen unwormed, although he said these situations probably occur more frequently than they actually do. you are seen.
Recently, he said responders in Southern California freed a humpback that had become trapped in equipment that was digging into its legs. Earlier this year, responders were able to free a humpback that had become entangled in fishing gear in a heavily trafficked area near Dutch Harbor, Alaska. NOAA Fisheries described that whale as “essentially tethered” and anchored in place by line before being released.
A humpback is unlikely to survive long without its worms, said John Calambokidis, a research biologist with the Cascadia Research Collective. He said one of the tragedies of entanglements is not just the death of the animals, but the manner in which they die, which can occur slowly and involve suffering.
The actual number of complications could be much higher than the number of confirmed cases, he said.
In recent years, there have been increasing efforts to find ways to reduce tangles, he said. California, for example, has made changes to the management of commercial Dungeness crab fishing to try to protect whales from entanglements.
Humpback populations on the U.S. West Coast have also been increasing and are generally doing well, he said.
He compared this to the situation on the East Coast involving North Atlantic right whale entanglements. NOAA Fisheries classifies the North Atlantic right whale as one of the most endangered large whale species in the world and entanglements as one of its greatest threats.
