Tag: Humpback Whales

A researcher in a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter first spotted the entangled humpback anchored to the bottom about 20 miles off the Oregon Coast. The whale’s white pectoral flipper extends underwater to the lower left, while white baleen outlines its open lower jaw at bottom right. The entanglement left the whale’s mouth stretched permanently open, making it unable to feed. Photo collected in partnership with Oregon Coast Aquarium, Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute and Cascadia Research Collective.

Fishing Vessel Joins Trained Team to Free Injured Humpback Whale 20 Miles off Oregon Coast

8/16/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. An Oregon team joined by experts from Washington and a local fisherman freed a severely entangled humpback whale about 20 miles off the Oregon Coast on July 26. While the team removed all of the gear from the whale, the entanglement left the young whale’s jaw permanently… SEE MORE

The NOAA Fisheries response team uses poles with specialized knives to cut entangling lines. Credit: Alaska Department of Fish and Game/Jamie Musbach (NOAA Fisheries Permit # 24359)

Humpback Whale Successfully Freed from Entanglement in Endicott Arm

7/26/2026 - By fisheries.noaa.gov, fisheries.noaa.gov. The Tracy Arm-Fords Terror wilderness, located 50 miles south of Juneau, Alaska, features a pair of steep glacial fjords: Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm. While remote, the waters in this area see steady vessel traffic, ranging from massive cruise ships and small charter boats to commercial fishing… SEE MORE

An entangled humpback whale in Iliuliuk Bay near the Port of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Credit: City of Unalaska, taken under NOAA Fisheries Permit #24359.

Entangled Humpback Whale Near Iliuliuk Bay, AK Successfully Cut Free

5/10/2024 - By fisheries.noaa.gov. The response, in a remote community, took several days and involved a broad array of partner agencies, organizations, and local trained volunteers. A humpback whale was entangled in fishing gear in Iliuliuk Bay, near the Port of Dutch Harbor, Alaska. Due to the efforts of NOAA, partners, and… SEE MORE

Scientists Discover The Anatomy Behind The Songs of Baleen Whales

2/27/2024 - By Will Dunham. WASHINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - It is one of Earth's most haunting sounds - the "singing" of baleen whales like the humpback, heard over vast distances in the watery realm. Now scientists have finally figured out how these filter-feeding marine mammals do it. Baleen whales - a group that includes the… SEE MORE

Humpback whales swimming underwater. Credit: Kogia.org

Climate Change and Marine Animals: A Conservation Challenge

Environment

6/11/2023 - By fisheries.noaa.gov Climate-driven changes such as higher ocean temperatures and extreme weather events are affecting the health of marine animals—and their ability to survive. Marine animals—like whales, dolphins, seals, and sea turtles—depend on a functioning ocean ecosystem for their survival. They are also important indicators of overall ocean health. NOAA… SEE MORE

Gregory "Slobirdr" Smith, CC BY-SA 2.0 humpwhaleimage via Wikimedia Commons

How much microplastic do whales eat? Up to 10 million pieces per day, Stanford research finds

1/21/2023 - By news.stanford.edu Analysis of ocean plastic pollution and whale foraging behavior tracked with noninvasive tags shows whales are ingesting tiny specks of plastic in far bigger quantities than previously thought, and nearly all of it comes from the animals they eat – not the water they gulp. BY JOSIE GARTHWAITE… SEE MORE

Brigitte Werner, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Humpback Whale Lands on Small Boat

7/26/2022 - By gCaptain. Environmental agencies in Massachussetts are urging mariners to use caution when operating vessels or personal watercraft near humbback whales after one of the mammals breached and landed on a 19-foot recreational boat near Plymouth Harbor on Sunday. You may have seen the viral video of the incident. Thankfully… SEE MORE

Dr. Louis M. Herman., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Humpback Whales No Longer Endangered

Coastal News

7/12/2022 - By Virginia Morell. The U.S. government announced Tuesday that it has removed most humpback whales from the federal endangered species list, saying that they have fully recovered in the last 46 years. The move marks "a true ecological success story," said Eileen Sobeck, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) assistant… SEE MORE

https://www.montereyherald.com/2019/12/18/rescuers-free-entangled-humpback-whale-off-california-coast

Entangled Humpback Whale Cleared of Marine Debris off Maui

2/18/2022 - HONOLULU (AP) — A female humpback whale traveling with a male and a calf has been freed after it was found entangled in a line with a large bundle of marine debris attached. The whale was freed Monday while swimming in the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary off… SEE MORE

Humpback Whales

https://sfist.com/2020/04/26/californias-dungeness-crab-season-will-end-on-may-15-to-shield-whales-from-harm/

California’s Dungeness Crab Season Will End May 15th

4/29/2020 - By Matt Charnock. The current Dungeness crab season was delayed by weeks last year to protect migrating gray, humpback, and blue whales; it will now end prematurely in mid-May for the same reason, as well. Commercial fishing remains the most prevalent means of culling for cetaceans (dolphins, whales, and porpoises),… SEE MORE