Cottontail, the Endangered Whale Caught Up in Fishing Gear Died After 5 Months of Struggle

After being entangled in fishing equipment for five months off the coast of South Carolina, a critically endangered whale died.

Cottontail

The Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced on Sunday that a North Atlantic right whale known as "Cottontail" had been discovered dead around 15 miles off the coast of Myrtle Beach.

Rescue Attempts

In October 2020, the 11-year-old male whale was seen entangled in fishing gear off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts.

At the time, the Center for Coastal Studies' Marine Animal Entanglement Response team added tracking devices to the ropes entangling the whale to chart its movements by satellite and provide data for potential disentanglement attempts. They also managed to carefully remove some of the gears and equipment from the whale.

According to the GARFO update, there was "a line over its head, exiting both sides of his mouth, stretching past his tail for around three to four body lengths."

The whale was last seen alive off Florida's Treasure Coast over a week ago. Cottontail, however, died as a result of his injury before conservation officers were able to release him from the fishing gear.

The animal's death is the latest in a series of "Unusual Mortality Events" (UME) among North Atlantic right whales in 2017.

GARFO

Officials also recorded 34 North Atlantic right whale deaths and 14 serious accidents in U.S. or Canadian waters over this time span, including Cottontail's death, according to the GARFO.

Collisions with vessels-their habitat and transit paths often intersect with shipping lanes-and entanglement in fishing gear, according to the NOAA, are the major causes of the UME.

Whales in Danger

By the early 1890s, commercial whalers had hunted North Atlantic right whales to extinction. According to the GARFO, they are now one of the world's most endangered big whale populations, with only 400 individuals left.

The GARFO said, "The 48 whales recorded so far in the UME constitute more than 10% of the population and is a major setback to the species' recovery."

In addition to entanglement and vessel strikes, the whales, which are mainly found in the North Atlantic's coastal waters, face threats such as habitat loss, climate change, and increased underwater noise levels from human activity, both of which can disrupt their daily behavior and contact.

According to NOAA Fisheries, North Atlantic right whales can weigh up to 140,000 pounds and reach up to 52 feet in length.

While evidence on their total lifetime is small, these whales are expected to live to be about 70 years old. Furthermore, both female and male right whales tend to live just 45 and 65 years, respectively. According to researchers, this shorter longevity is due to aging caused by humans.

Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Events

An accidental stranding involves a major die-off of any marine mammal species. It requires immediate action is described as an unusual mortality event (UME) under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Understanding and researching marine mammal UMEs is critical because they may serve as indices of ocean health, providing insight into broader environmental problems that may affect human health. NOAA Fisheries formed the Working Group on Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Events in 1991 to fulfill this task. With revisions to the MMPA amendments, the working group was formalized in 1992.