Entanglement in fishing gear is one of the most significant causes of whale suffering worldwide, affecting hundreds of large whales annually.
Whale entanglement causes some of the most prolonged and measurable suffering documented in wild animal welfare. Gear wraps around flippers, jaws, or bodies, causing tissue necrosis and infection over weeks to months while the whale continues to swim, feed unsuccessfully, and become progressively weaker. Disentanglement teams who reach whales in time observe open wounds, embedded rope, and animals in severe body condition — direct evidence of chronic suffering. The welfare and conservation case for ropeless fishing gear is overwhelming: eliminating vertical lines removes the entanglement risk entirely without reducing fishing access. The primary barrier is cost and regulatory inertia, not technical feasibility.