Marine mammal rescuers operating on Vancouver Island have reported a surge in whale entanglements this summer. Paul Cottrell, who heads the marine mammal team at Fisheries and Oceans Canada, stated that they have been addressing an average of one to two entanglements weekly over the past two months, consistent with last year’s numbers. Alongside these incidents, they have conducted several necropsies.
The most recent entanglement involved a humpback whale calf and its mother near the south coast of Vancouver Island. The calf was ensnared in over 100 meters of rope, which it had been dragging since July 5 when it was initially reported missing from British Columbia’s central coast. Cottrell’s team successfully located and freed the calf after a seven-hour operation in collaboration with U.S. counterparts.
Cottrell highlighted the increasing frequency of such incidents, with entanglement rates showing no signs of decline. He attributed this trend to the growing presence of humpback whales in coastal waters of British Columbia, a positive outcome of conservation efforts known as the “humpback comeback,” but lamented the risks posed by entanglement in inshore fishing gear.
Jackie Hildering, a researcher and educator at the Marine Education and Research Society (MERS), emphasized the importance of conservation efforts in providing humpback whales with a second chance after facing extinction due to hunting. However, she expressed concerns about the ongoing entanglement issues, noting that 50% of whales she has observed through research displayed prior signs of entanglement, possibly underestimating the true scale of the problem.
Hildering stressed the significance of prevention and education in addressing entanglement risks, advocating for proactive measures to mitigate these threats. She urged the public to participate in whale-safe boating courses developed by MERS, endorsed by the federal government, to help prevent humpback entanglements and reduce fatalities.