Entanglement in fishing gear is a leading cause of death and suffering for large whales globally. Disentanglement response teams and gear modification are critical welfare interventions.
Entanglement in fishing gear causes some of the most prolonged suffering in marine mammals. Animals may drag gear for months, suffering progressive exhaustion, infection from lacerations, and inability to feed normally. Disentanglement by trained teams can save individual animals but cannot address the scale of the problem without gear modification. Ropeless fishing technology and whale-safe gear standards represent the systemic solutions needed.