PREVIEW

A humpback whale entangled in lobster pot lines off the coast of Cornwall's Mounts Bay has been successfully freed following a dramatic rescue operation on Sunday (31March2024).
The giant aquatic mammal, named Ivy, was spotted between Mousehole and Newlyn in Cornwall on Easter Sunday. She was ensnared by ropes wrapped around its head and dorsal fin.
The whale was spotted ensnared in ropes by a vessel from Marine Discovery boat tours of Penzance. These caused a severe wound to its tail, and was at risk of collision in the busy waters near Newlyn.

"The poor whale was wound into the ropes, with two drawn tightly across its back and another wrapped round its tail stock, which had caused a nasty wound," a Facebook post from the Marine Discovery team read. "It was getting so choppy we had to drop our passengers back in the harbour.

Despite warnings from British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) against direct intervention due to high risks, the crew of the vessel monitored the whale's situation closely.
A Penlee lifeboat crew, equipped and returning from another mission, successfully freed the whale, which expressed gratitude with tail slaps before swimming away. The operation demonstrated “exceptional skill” amid challenging conditions according to the Marine Discovery team.
Hannah Wilson, the co-owner of Marine Discovery in Penzance, and her team highlighted the increasing incidents of whales returning to the area's shores, suggesting that similar entanglements might become more common.


“Hopefully the same thing doesn't happen again, they said in a Facebook post. “All these humpback whales have been driven inshore for some reason, and it is bringing them straight into areas of human activity, both leisure and commercial. There are thousands of ropes and lines - it is like trying to navigate a lethal maze.”

Explaining the problems, Hannah added: “Entanglement in fishing gear has always been a global problem for cetaceans. 100s possibly 1000s of cetaceans die around the world each year after becoming entangled in fishing gear.
“Humpback whales are increasingly being recorded close inshore in the seas around the UK. This means they are in areas that overlap with high fishing effort and therefore are more likely to become entangled.”
She went on to say that this is thought likely to be due to warming oceans affecting nutrient availability and plankton structure in the North East Atlantic.”
In the case of Ivy, she appears to be a whale who failed to take on enough food to migrate south to her breeding grounds and has spent the winter feeding off the Cornish coast.
Explaining the problems, Hannah added: “Entanglement in fishing gear has always been a global problem for cetaceans. 100s possibly 1000s of cetaceans die around the world each year after becoming entangled in fishing gear.
“Humpback whales are increasingly being recorded close inshore in the seas around the UK. This means they are in areas that overlap with high fishing effort and therefore are more likely to become entangled.”
She went on to say that this is thought likely to be due to warming oceans affecting nutrient availability and plankton structure in the North East Atlantic.”
In the case of Ivy, she appears to be a whale who failed to take on enough food to migrate south to her breeding grounds and has spent the winter feeding off the Cornish coast.