BOSTON (WWLP) - A juvenile North Atlantic right whale named "Division" was sighted off Jekyll Island in Georgia, entangled in fishing lines, raising concerns about its survival, experts say.
In a news release by New England Aquarium, the three-year-old whale has fishing lines wrapped around his head and through his mouth, causing serious injury, according to NOAA Fisheries biologists. An aerial team spotted him on December 3 with the entanglement. The Aqaruium says that in July, he didn't have anything wrapped around him.
Members removed some of the fishing gear from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, FWC, and Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute; however, his health has declined.
"Division's entanglement is significant and life-threatening," said Heather Pettis, Senior Scientist in the Aquarium's Anderson Cabot Center. "There are multiple indicators that Division has been entangled for some time and that the entanglement has led to a worrisome decline in his overall health. Aggregations of whale lice on the head, body, and tail, a pronounced decline in body condition, and a section of remaining rope that is deeply embedded in the top of the whale's head leave us very concerned for this whale's welfare and survival."
"Last year, there were four detected entanglement events in December, and so sighting this whale in its current state, while incredibly disheartening, was not a complete surprise," Pettis said. "We are grateful for the extraordinary efforts that went into trying to free this whale from the gear and hold out hope that Division can overcome the odds stacked against him."
North Atlantic right whales are critically endangered, with an estimated population of about 380 and only 72 reproductive females. Entanglements and vessel strikes are leading causes of death and injury. Since 1980, scientists have documented over 1,800 entanglement events involving over 85 percent of the right whale population.
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