Freeing a humpback whale

February 2018

A feel-good story for the end of your week -- check out this humpback whale breaching after being freed from entangling debris in Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary!

Transcript

NOAAHawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary

On Friday, January 12, a team of trained responders off Makena Beach Maui freed an entangled adult humpback whale.

This whale was trailing more than 285 feet of fishing line from its mouth.

Working together from small boats, responders removed and recovered all the gear from the whale.

Upon release, the whale immediately breached several times!

Now free from entanglement, this whale likely has an excellent chance of survival.

If you see a marine animal in distress, do not approach closely or attempt to assist. Instead, call the 24- hour NOAA hotline at 1-888-256-9840.

This response was coordinated by NOAA Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, working under NOAA Fisheries Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (permit #18786-002). Breaching filmed by J. Pantukhoff