Humpback Artemis freed after four days entangled in fishing gear
Royal Canadian Navy and Department of Fisheries and Oceans rescue three-year-old whale from crab lines in the Strait of Georgia.
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A three-year-old humpback whale named Artemis was successfully freed from fishing gear on June 14 after four days of tracking and rescue efforts in the Strait of Georgia.
Artemis was first spotted on June 11 with crab lines wrapped around her pectoral and dorsal fins. Royal Canadian Navy members aboard the Canadian Forces auxiliary vessel Stikine identified the entangled whale while at the Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges. The navy immediately contacted the Department of Fisheries and Oceans' Marine Mammal Rescue Unit.
Rescue teams worked from a rigid-hulled inflatable boat to cut away the remaining ropes. The operation took several days of coordinated effort between both organizations before Artemis was finally freed of all remaining gear on June 14.
The navy said the operation highlights the importance of vigilance on the water and strong partnerships in protecting marine wildlife. Whale entanglements in fishing gear have become increasingly common as the humpback population continues to rebound in the Salish Sea. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans estimates that between 600,000 and 800,000 metric tonnes of fishing gear is lost or cut loose annually to the ocean.