Desperate search for ‘disorientated’ humpback whale calf tangled in fishing lines and buoys out at sea
- Entangled young 7-8 metre humpback whale spotted south of Port Macquarie
- Initially seen heading south – against migration routes – but it turned north
- Researchers want members of the public to help report its movement
Whale researchers are desperately trying to track the movements of an entangled juvenile humpback whale after it was spotted stuck in buoys and fishing lines.
The young whale, around 7-8 metres in length, is believed to be offshore from Crescent Head, around 40km north of Port Macquarie in NSW and trailing a line as well as four buoys.
The Organisation for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans is asking for help to track the whale via social media and its phone line.
ORRCA is asking members of the public along the coast north of Port Macquarie to report any sighting of an entangled juvenile humpback whale (pictured above) to its rescue hotline on 9415 3333
It was reported as 210 metres offshore just south of Port Macquarie on Tuesday morning and moving southwards, but it has turned and is heading north.
Humpback whales usually migrate north to mate and calve from June but the timing can vary depending on ‘water temperature, sea ice, predation risk, prey abundance and the location of their feeding ground’, according to the Environment Department.
A spokesperson for ORRCA told Daily Mail Australia the whales can become disoriented when entangled and head in the wrong direction.
‘ORRCA is asking members of the public, if you are out along the coastline in this area, please keep an eye out and report your sightings into the ORRCA Rescue Hotline on 9415 3333,’ the group posted on Facebook.
‘Importantly, please do not approach a whale or attempt to disentangle it. All Whales and Dolphins are protected in Australian waters.’
Humpback whales separate from their mothers around seven months and the entangled whale in question is believed to be traveling on its own and may be seeking to join a pod of adults.
They live to around 45 years of age.
Up to 40,000 humpback whales are due to begin heading north along Australia’s east coast from now – migrating to the southern Whitsundays area where they mate and calve
An ORRCA spokesperson said it wasn’t clear what type of line the whale is trapped in.
Humpback numbers are thriving in Australian waters, with around 40,000 whales expected to head north to mate.
Their destinations are thought to be along the Great Barrier Reef, concentrated around the southern Whitsundays area.