In June 2025, a humpback whale entangled in a drum line was spotted off the coast of Sydney, Australia.
What happened?
Each year, along the east and west coasts of Australia, a large whale migration occurs. The Guardian reported that one of these whales became entangled in a drum line somewhere off the coast of Sydney.
People utilize drum lines for catching and diverting sharks from areas populated with humans or for fishing, and, unfortunately, it’s easy for whales to become entangled in them.
Rescuers from several different organizations, including the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, attempted to track the whale as it swam, as it was unclear whether the whale was continuing along the migration path or was moving in a different direction due to stress from the entanglement.
While authorities stated that the whale may have ended up untangling itself from the drum line, rescuers still spent days searching for the animal.
Unfortunately, as wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta explained to The Guardian, “Looking for an entangled whale is like looking for a needle in a hay stack. It may be the size of a bus, but the ocean is a big place.”
Why is whale entanglement concerning?
Whale entanglement is a common occurrence, as the ocean is full of drum lines, ropes, and plastic that can snare them. While some whales may be able to free themselves from these entanglements, they could still end up suffering from infection or injury afterward.
Many whales end up dying as a result of entanglement, though, leading to a decline in the whale population. Even whales that do live may not be able to free themselves and end up carrying around those entanglements until someone manages to free them.
Because higher temperatures are displacing whales and causing them to seek new areas to feed, which often are closer to our shorelines, the species faces an increased risk of being around more drum lines, rope, and plastic. The more they come into contact with these items, the more chances they have of becoming entangled.
Additionally, the amount of plastic (and other pollution) in the ocean can not only result in injury or death in whales, but also lead to human health issues due to microplastics, as well as destroy ocean ecosystems.
What’s being done about whale entanglements?
Unfortunately, it seems rescuers were unable to locate the humpback whale spotted in Australia, so it’s unknown what happened to it.
However, official whale entanglement response networks exist and are constantly making plans for the best ways to deal with whales in entanglement situations.
The best way to keep whales from becoming entangled, though, is to keep plastic pollution, drum lines, and other pollution out of our oceans.
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