Endangered right whale found entangled off Georgia coast now under watch
By Brooke Butler
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JEKYLL ISLAND, Ga. (WJCL) — An endangered North Atlantic right whale is being monitored after it was found entangled in fishing gear off the coast of Jekyll Island.
The whale was first spotted Wednesday and was identified as a right whale named Division, a juvenile male born in 2022. According to NOAA, he was last seen gear-free in July.
Division’s entanglement was described as complex, with several lines wrapping his head and mouth, including one cutting into his blowhole.
Response crews worked to remove as much gear as possible. Now, they are watching Division to see how he does.
Biologists classified Division as seriously injured. NOAA said this designation means that Division is likely to die as a result of this entanglement.
WJCL 22 News spoke to a marine scientist with Oceana about the incident.
“Even though the line is removed, the injuries are still lasting and it’s really up to him to recover both from the open wounds while trying to do what North Atlantic right whales do best: feed and migrate and all the other important things they do,” said Nora Ives, a marine scientist with Oceana.
Ives said entanglement in fishing gear continues to be one of the biggest threats to these critically endangered whales.
“Entanglement in fishing line and vessel strikes are the two main threats to this critically endangered population, meaning that they are the two pressures that are keeping these whales from recovering. Right now, we estimate there are about 380 individuals total in the population on Earth. So, very low numbers,” she said.
Oceana says there is a solution to entanglement. The group hopes to remove vertical lines in the water that are entangling these whales in the first place by getting more people to use something called pop-up gear in areas where right whales are found.
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