Blogposts: 2020

Last week the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and Our Daily Planet hosted a dialogue on the progress made, and challenges still ahead, in Canada’s efforts to protect the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, a species vulnerable to both entanglement and ship strikes and on the brink of extinction.

In a bid to save the species, key stakeholders in Canada including the fishing and shipping industries, NGOs and the Canadian government have implemented measures to help protect and conserve the right whales, including implementing gear modifications and authorising ropeless fishing gear trials, and slowing down vessels when right whales are detected.

Speakers include Patricia Zaat, Country Director – Canada, IFAW; Moira W. Brown, Research Scientist – Canada, Canadian Whale Institute/Campobello Whale Rescue Team; and Monica Medina, Our Daily Planet. In terms of discussions around disentanglement efforts, listen in from about 27:40.

While the COVID lock down has halted a lot of activities, large whale disentanglement teams around the world have remained busy. Here are just a few successful release stories from earlier this month.

Cape Cod, USA 03/06/2020 – Center for Coastal Studies

The Center for Coastal Studies Marine Animal Entanglement Response team (CCS MAER) disentangled at young humpback whale 15 miles east of Cape Cod, MA. This was the second time the young whale, identified as a 2015 calf, has been disentangled by the team in less than a year. The whale had bitten down on a buoy line attached to fishing gear on the seafloor, likely while feeding, and was towing the heavy fishing gear below it. The whale was notably distressed, likely indicating that it had been recently entangled. This was the first whale disentanglement operation since the start of the pandemic. “I think the entire team has a new appreciation of some of the challenges our first responders have faced” said Scott Landry, Director of the CCS MAER team. “Disentangling a whale in rough sea conditions is hard. Doing so with full PPE added a new challenge especially since clear visibility and communication are key to our safety. But the whole team was up to the challenge and is committed to keeping our community, and whales, safe.”

Scarborough,South Africa – 17/06/2020 – SA Whale Disentanglement Network

The South African disentanglement team responded to reports from fishermen of a free-swimming entangled adult humpback whale, that had become entangled in  fishing ropes and buoys  around its tail. From arrival on scene, the team took less than 30 minutes to release the whale.

Gold Coast, Australia 19/06/2020 – Humpback mother and calf released

Despite rough sea and weather conditions, a humpback mother and calf were successfully released from controversial shark nets off the Gold Coast, Australia.

Newfoundland, Canada 21/06/2020

The Whale Release and Strandings crew took a call at 0815 from a fisherman about an entrapped whale in his herring net. The crew arrived at 1400 (this team are based near St Johns and cover ALL of Newfoundland and Labrador) and put to sea with the fisherman and crew in support. The humpback whale had dragged other gear with a weight, which fisherman suspected to be an anchor, into his net and anchored itself against the net. All of the gear was removed from the whale with minor damage, and returned to the fisherman.  The whale immediately left the area with no sightings of it once it was cleared of the gear.

A great interview with Julie Huntington of the Whale Release and Strandings group in Newfoundland, one of the most successful disentanglement teams in the world.

https://blog.cwf-fcf.org/index.php/en/disentangling-whales-ewfoundland-qa-julie-huntington/?fbclid=IwAR0rRtWehVlf_YQso6D-AVhNvuRPzS-KqNJ0ZDgVdWOtDLA7xC_c40yiexE

“A disentanglement release can be done safely but it takes a community. It’s not just the WRS disentanglement team releasing the animal. It also includes the fishermen and their knowledge of the gear, the disentanglers’ experience as well as the community where the incident occurs. It’s a collaborative effort. You can’t be a cowboy — don’t do it alone”.

http://newfoundlandlabradorwhales.net/entanglements

A couple of years old now but a great article from across the pond.

I had the pleasure of working with Scott, Everett and Bob in Cape Cod a few years back, in fact on my first day with the team I got to witness first-hand how slick their operation is when a call came in about an entangled humpback and within 15 minutes we were on the boat heading out of the harbour!

Their entanglement response strategy is what we’re striving for here in Scotland while more long-term solutions are sought.

Kleenex, a North Atlantic right whale whose ability to feed and breed had been impeded by an entanglement. Image credit: CCS.

“This is not the way that we’re going to conserve whale populations. It cannot be the long-term solution for dealing with the entanglement problem. It’s simply too dangerous for whales, and it’s certainly too dangerous for people….Landry says he looks forward to the day when Lobstermen can go to work, and he doesn’t have to”.

https://www.capeandislands.org/post/cutting-fishing-gear-whales-not-way-save-them#stream/0

News this week from the 2020 Gear Innovation Summit in Halifax, Canada. Fishers, gear manufacturers, entanglement responders, environmental groups and government officials participated in a two-day workshop where discussions focused on ways to  reduce fishing gear interactions with marine mammals.

“…..there’s a misconception that the fishing industry is resistant to changes aimed at protecting marine species. It’s quite the contrary…They’re the ones who are coming up with some of the most innovative ideas….” 

You can read the full article here: https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/local/two-day-halifax-fishing-gear-summit-aims-to-reduce-right-whale-entanglement-409906/