Large Whale Entanglement Response Program,

West Coast Region

Frequently Asked Questions
May 2018

What is NOAA Fisheries’ role?

NOAA Fisheries is responsible for carrying out the Marine Mammal Protection Act to conserve and manage
marine mammal populations and their habitat and to coordinate responses to strandings and
entanglements. NOAA Fisheries works in partnership with regional fishery management councils and state
fishery managers to reduce the unintentional entanglement of marine mammals in fishing operations. By
reducing the number of large whale entanglements and minimizing the likelihood of large whales becoming
entangled in fishing gear, NOAA Fisheries can continue to promote the recovery and conservation of
healthy whale populations along the U.S. West Coast.

What is large whale entanglement?

Large whales periodically become entangled in active or derelict fishing gear, or other ropes/lines/chains in
the marine environment. Some whales that become entangled are able to shed the gear on their own.
However, other whales may be unable to shed the gear and can carry it for days, months, or even years.
Whales that are entangled can suffer from injuries, infection, and wrapping that can impair their ability to
feed or swim. The drag from the gear or debris can cause whales to expend more energy to swim, can
make it harder for them to feed, and can result in starvation. Survival times with an entanglement vary. For
example, a recent study found that for North Atlantic right whales that could not shed an entanglement, the
average survival time was about five months, though it ranged with some living for many years and others
dying immediately.

Who responds to large whale entanglements?

Along the West Coast, NOAA Fisheries’ Protected Resources Division oversees the Large Whale
Entanglement Response Network, which is comprised of whale biologists, researchers, naturalists,
veterinarians, veterinary technicians, whale watchers, the U.S. Coast Guard, and state agencies. Due to
the dangerous nature of responding to entangled large whales, our responders go through extensive
training and many years of apprenticeship to learn the proper techniques and protocols to ensure their
safety and that of the animals. Responders are experts at understanding whale behavior, biology and
health, vessel operations, handling ropes under tension, and coordinating entanglement response teams.
This work is done under a permit held by NOAA’s Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response
Program that provides authorization for responders.

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Are reports of large whale entanglements increasing?
Over the last few years NOAA Fisheries has responded to an increasing number of large whale
entanglements reported to the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network and Large Whale
Entanglement Response Network. In 2017, a total of 31 whales were confirmed entangled off the coasts of
California, Oregon, and Washington. 2016 saw 48 confirmed cases and 2015 saw 50 cases, the highest
annual totals for the West Coast Region since NOAA Fisheries started keeping records in 1982. Between
2000 and 2013, the average was about 10 confirmed whale entanglements reported per year.
Entanglement reports may be increasing for a number of reasons including: increasing whale populations,
changes in the distribution of fishing effort, changes in the patterns of distribution and movements of
whales, and increased public awareness of whale entanglements and reporting procedures. Many of these
potential causing factors are, in turn, influenced to some degree by environmental conditions. For example,
the late opening of the Dungeness crab fishing season in California in 2016 likely influenced the distribution
and concentration of gear in certain areas where whales also congregate.

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When and where are the entanglements happening?
Reports in 2017 originated all along the West Coast, but were concentrated in central and southern
California. However, entanglement report locations may not reflect where the entanglement originally
occurred.

What species are being entangled?

Several species of whales have been reported entangled in recent years, including humpback whales, gray
whales, killer whales, fin whales and blue whales. Humpback whales continue to be the predominant
species reported as entangled during recent years. The first confirmed blue whale entanglement was
reported in 2015, followed by three in 2016, and three in 2017.

What is the source of entanglements?

The source of entangling gear is unknown for the majority of whale entanglement reports (52%, or 67 of
129, of confirmed entanglement reports from 2015-2017 involve gear of unknown origin) and any line,
cable, or chain in the ocean can pose an entanglement risk. Detailed fishing gear guides have been
developed to help the West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network identify the source of gear that is
removed from whales and to inform approaches for reducing impacts from those fisheries. Multiple fisheries
on the West Coast have been involved with entanglements in recent years, and the number of
entanglements related to each fishery type has varied from year to year. In 2015 and 2016, there was an
increase in the number of confirmed whale entanglements associated with the Dungeness crab commercial
trap fishery, compared to previous years. Other fisheries identified include: gillnet fisheries, sablefish trap
fishery, spot prawn trap fishery, and the spiny lobster trap fishery. As the documentation of entanglements
has been improved, NOAA Fisheries has increased its ability to identify details associated with
entanglement events including gear type, originating location, the date the gear was set, etc. NOAA
Fisheries is working closely with the fishing industry and fishery managers, including the Dungeness crab
fishery participants and managers, to promote improved marking of gear to make it easier to identify
specific sources of entanglements and develop measures to reduce entanglements.

Why disentangle large whales?

The International Whaling Commission estimates that worldwide 300,000 whales, dolphins, and porpoises
die from entanglements each year, and entanglements are the main human-caused threat to large whales.
The documentation collected during an entanglement response can inform researchers and fishery
managers how the whale became entangled and may hold insights that can inform new strategies to
prevent future entanglements. Disentangling a whale can be dangerous, even for highly trained
responders, and can be stressful for the whale involved. By having a Large Whale Entanglement Response
Program with skilled responders it reduces the temptation for untrained members of the public to attempt
disentanglement themselves. Attempts to disentangle whales by untrained persons not only harm the
whale, but it can lead to the injury or death of the untrained individual.

If responders can confirm that the entanglement is not a threat to the whale’s survival, and/or the whale is
likely to shed the gear on its own, responders may monitor the situation, particularly in dangerous
conditions, rather than attempt disentanglement. Responders may collect photos and video to identify the
whale in the future, document any injuries from the entanglement, and/or take a small biopsy of skin and fat
to genetically identify the population that whale belongs to, as well as to identify the individual in case it is
ever found dead.

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What are the risks to the disentanglement team?
Whales are wild animals that have unpredictable behaviors. The size and power of large whales create
risks to the disentanglement team when they closely approach whales in small vessels to document and
remove entangling gear. In addition, the tools used for disentanglements, such as specialized knives, lines,
and large buoys, can also present dangers for responders, including being pulled overboard. The
techniques that have been developed over the last 40 years rely on working from a small inflatable boat,
with hooked knives on long poles that keep responders at a safe distance from the whale and reduce risks.
Even so, accidents do still occur and even trained responders have been injured or killed.

What is being done to address this problem?

NOAA Fisheries has done significant outreach on the West Coast to the fishing industry, state and federal
fishery managers, and the public to make them aware of the issue, promote the development of ideas to
reduce entanglements, and improve the reporting of entanglements. California, Oregon, and Washington
have all convened working groups to address the recent increase in entanglements and discuss potential
solutions to the problem. The California Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group, for example,
produced an updated Best Practices Guide to reduce entanglements caused by Dungeness Crab fishing
gear in 2016. In 2017, funding to promote research to help reduce future whale entanglement risk along the
West Coast was provided to multiple groups through NOAA Fisheries’ Bycatch Reduction Engineering
Program (BREP). This funding will support research to improve understanding of current gear and fishing
practices, as well as potential gear modifications. BREP funding also supported a workshop in 2017 to
bring together a diverse group to identify the most promising ideas for innovation to address the
entanglement issue along the West Coast.

What can I do to help?

Prompt reporting is the best way to help entangled whales. Report entangled whales to our 24/7 hotline by
calling 1-877-SOS-WHALE (1-877-767-9425) or hailing the U.S. Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16. Please
stay with the whale as long as it is safe to do so. Never attempt disentanglement or remove any gear
without training and authorization. Please try to get video or photos showing the entangling gear but
remember to stay 100 yards from the whale and beware that lines in the water could snag your vessel.
Please also understand that it is not always possible to respond to every entangled whale.

Can I get updates on the status of reported whales?

Forming a response to an entangled whale is very complex and requires a lot of time and coordination.
Real-time updates are rarely available as the response team must focus on helping the animal in need.
NOAA Fisheries’ Regional Stranding Coordinators keep the NOAA Fisheries WCR Communications Team
up-to-date on responses in the field. Media inquiries should be directed to Jim Milbury at 562-980-4006 for
California cases, or Michael Milstein at 503-231-6268 for Oregon and Washington cases.

Where can I find more information?

Each year, NOAA Fisheries provides an annual entanglement summary that includes species information,
guidance for reporting entanglements, and more about NOAA Fisheries’ work in California, Oregon, and
Washington.

For the annual summary and additional information, visit the NOAA Fisheries website at:
http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/protected_species/marine_mammals/disentanglement_network.ht
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