The rescued humpback had been spotted in the Strait of Georgia on June 11 with crab lines wrapped around its pectoral and dorsal fins.<\/p>\n
A humpback whale entangled in fishing gear was tracked for four days by the navy and DFO before finally being freed from ropes and floats.<\/p>\n
The rescued humpback, identified as a three-year-old known as Artemis, was spotted in the Strait of Georgia on June 11 with crab lines wrapped around its pectoral and dorsal fins.<\/p>\n
Royal Canadian Navy members aboard the Canadian Forces auxiliary vessel Stikine first identified the entangled whale while at the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges.<\/p>\n
The navy team teamed up with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans\u2019 Marine Mammal Rescue Unit to locate, assess and track the whale.<\/p>\n
The rescue team worked from a rigid-hulled inflatable on the complex task of cutting the whale free over the following days.<\/p>\n
On June 14, Artemis was successfully freed from all remaining ropes.<\/p>\n
The navy said in a statement that the operation highlights the importance of vigilance on the water and strong partnerships in protecting marine wildlife.<\/p>\n
Whale entanglements in fishing gear have become increasingly common as the humpback population continues to rebound in the Salish Sea.<\/p>\n
DFO estimates that between 600,000 and 800,000 metric tonnes of fishing gear is lost or cut loose to avoid fines for illegal fishing in the oceans every year.<\/p>\n