A humpback whale off Vancouver Island has been discovered tangled in a fishing net, which could prove to be fatal for the animal.
On Sunday, September 21st, the Vancouver Island Whale Watching Association (VIWWA) spotted two humpback whales near the Ballenas Islands in the Strait of Georgia, Wiggins (BCY1469) and Fader (BCY0195).
Upon further inspection, VIWWA determined that Wiggins was caught entangled in a fishing net, as there was an orange buoy trailing behind him.
“Entanglements pose a severe risk to humpback whales,” wrote VIWWA in a social media post.
“Gear can impede their ability to feed and travel, cause deep wounds, and ultimately prove fatal if left unnoticed.”
VIWWA immediately reported the situation to the Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) which prompted a quick response.
DFO instructed the crew on site to remain with the whales, and to document their movements until a team of disentanglement professionals could arrive at their location.
When DFO arrived at the scene, they were able to deploy a satellite tag onto the fishing gear that Wiggins was caught in.
This will enable responders to track the position of Wiggins, as he is still on-the-move, despite his entanglement.
“In this case, the quick reporting, continuous monitoring, and deployment of tracking equipment very likely prevented a tragic outcome,” wrote VIWWA.
As of Monday, September 22nd, the disentanglement operation was launched by DFO. As of this publication, no new updates have been provided as to the success of the operation.
According to DFO officials, this situation could have been easily avoided with some forethought.
“Debris is a real problem for marine wildlife,” DFO wrote in a statement to Victoria Buzz.
“The public can help prevent entanglements by cutting packing material, banding, rope and other looped material before disposing of it, and by not be disposing [sic] of these materials in the marine environment.”
VIWWA says that Wiggins was born in 2022 to his mother, Lorax. Since he was born, Wiggins has become a regular visitor to the Salish Sea, with a growing number of sightings contributing to data analyzing calf survival in the humpback population.
Wiggins’ companion, Fader is also a well-known humpback with a more extensive sighting history along Vancouver Island’s coast, according to VIWWA.
