Mother Humpback Whale Tangled in Fishing Line Freed in Maui Waters
A mother humpback whale was freed from hundreds of feet of fishing line and marine debris off the Hawaiian island of Maui on February 14, officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said.
Footage released by the NOAA shows the operation to free the whale off Lahaina on Monday.
The response team took six hours to free the whale from an estimated 550 feet of fishing line and marine debris wrapped tightly around the whale’s head, which resulted in line scars near her mouth, the NOAA said.
“The debris included a dozen different types of lines and netting, with at least 30 feet of thick line estimated at greater than 1 1/2” in diameter,” the NOAA said in a press release.
The adult female was accompanied by her calf and a male escort humpback, the NOAA said, and once freed, “the mother and her calf went into resting behavior, with the calf tucking under the mother’s chin.”
The NOAA said the successful response increased the survival chances for both the mother and her calf. Credit: NOAA via Storyful
