Entanglement in fishing gear is now the leading human cause of death for large whales globally. The welfare consequences are severe and prolonged, and solutions require coordinated action across fishing industries.
Whale entanglement welfare consequences are severe and prolonged. Unlike bycatch drowning, entanglement rarely causes rapid death. Ropes cut into whale tissue as the animal moves, causing deep lacerations that become infected. The drag load forces constant muscle effort, depleting body condition over weeks or months. Animals observed to disentangle themselves or be freed by rescue teams often show severe wounds, emaciation, and behavioural abnormalities suggesting significant pain experience. For critically endangered species like North Atlantic right whales, entanglement is an extinction-level threat driven by industrial-scale fishing in their core habitat.