Provincetown, MA – On Saturday, August 12, the Center for Coastal Studies’ (CSS) Marine Animal Entanglement Response team (MAER) disentangled a humpback whale off Cape Ann. The whale, known as Pinball, was with her calf at the time. The prognosis for both whales is now much improved. The MAER team was aided by Good Samaritan boaters, the Hurricane II whale watch vessel, a commercial fisher and the US Coast Guard.
The whale was discovered by boaters on Saturday morning and showed clear signs of distress as she struggled in fishing gear. After reporting the whale to the MAER hotline the boaters stood by the whale at a safe distance. At some point the whale swam off, still entangled. Aided by the Hurricane II and the US Coast Guard out of Gloucester, mariners kept watch over the whale and her calf as they swam south.
Once on scene the MAER team spent the next few hours assessing the whale and attempting disentanglement, under the direction of Scott Landry, Director of the CCS Marine Animal Entanglement Program. Throughout the operation Pinball’s calf, now around eight months old, spent time away from its mother, periodically rejoining her to nurse. Using large floats and the drag from its small inflatable boat, the MAER team eventually removed all of the entangling gear that was lodged in her mouth. The team stayed with Pinball until she rejoined her calf.
CCS is grateful to to all the mariners who helped.
Boaters are urged to report any entanglement sightings of whales, sea-turtles or other marine animals to the MAER team (1-800-900-3622) or the US Coast Guard on VHF 16, and to stand by the animal at a safe distance until trained responders arrive.
CCS disentanglement work is supported in part by grants from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (MA-DMF), the Massachusetts Environmental Trust, and private foundations and donors. All disentanglement activities are conducted under a federal permit authorized by NOAA.
Photo: Members of the Center for Coastal Studies’ Marine Animal Entanglement Response team disentangled an entangled humpback off Cape Ann Saturday. Shown left to right: Emily Kelly, Paulette Durazo, and Bob Lynch. Photo credit: Center for Coastal Studies, under NOAA NMFS permit #24359.
