Humpback Whale Gives Thanks To Divers

November 25, 2010

The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man. —Charles Darwin, naturalist

PACIFIC OCEAN – When a humpback whale became entangled in hundreds of yards of nets and fishing line, she was lucky to be spotted by a caring fisherman. Rescuers arrived and spent hours cutting her free. Read below how the whale then thanked each diver individually!

And from all of us here at Global Animal, we hope you are fortunate enough to be surrounded by people who help you get untangled from anything that binds you. And may you always know the joy of receiving and giving love to animals around the globe. Happy Thanksgiving! – Global Animal

A front page story in the San Francisco Chronicle told the story of a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. The whale also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth.

A fisherman spotted the whale just east of the Farallon Islands (beyond the Golden Gate bridge) and radioed an environmental group for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived. They determined that the whale was so bad off that the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her. The team worked for hours, carefully slashing through the labyrinth of lines with curved knives. Eventually, they freed her.

The divers say that once the female humpback was free to move, she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. The whale then came back to each diver, one at a time, and gave each a nudge, pushing her rescuers gently around as she was thanking them. Some divers said it was the most beautiful experience of their lives.

The diver who cut the rope out of the whale’s mouth said her eyes were following him the whole time. And he will never be the same.

 

MAGNIFICENT WHALE RESCUE VIDEO:

(WHALES/VIDEO)  You must see this unforgettable humpback whale rescue captured on video. Watch as Valentina, a young whale caught in fishing net in the Sea of Cortez, goes from near-death to freedom and rewards her rescuers with dozens of full-body breeches and tail flips.

This video of Michael Fishbach, co-founder of the Great Whale Conservancy, freeing the entangled humpback whale and the joyous whale’s reaction, is perhaps the most extraordinary we’ve seen. Love it. Share it. Let it inspire your own heroism. – Global Animal

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15 Responses to Humpback Whale Gives Thanks To Divers

  1. Azi July 14, 2011 at 11:38 pm #

    Hey guys — This is a great story, but alas, not 100% true. Even if it is true, the photos don’t have anything to do with the story, rather they come from another photography adventure: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/722787-divers-extraordinary-encounter-with-50ft-humpback-whale

  2. Opie_00187 July 10, 2011 at 10:58 pm #

    good job guys

  3. MalikTous July 10, 2011 at 2:07 am #

    First, that’s a baleen whale, a plankton filter feeder, and is unable to eat a diver. Toothed whales (sperm whales, narwhals, orcas, dolphins, and similar) might have the physical ability to chew a diver but generally do not.

    Second, this is a great demonstration of both interspecies co-operation to untangle the whale, and a fisherman’s proper response to an unusual occurrence while harvesting fish. Getting that garbage out of the ocean and off the whale is hopefully also his attitude towards bycatch – he’ll use the right gage netting and proper supplementary devices so he avoids killing turtles, strangling dolphins, or otherwise causing excessive bycatch kills.

  4. Vedette June 30, 2011 at 4:34 pm #

    Those whales are huge, they could have easily devoured the divers and take off

  5. Neopfyle June 28, 2011 at 8:35 pm #

    The Humpbacks are saying .. thanks for all the fish 

  6. Muskan June 28, 2011 at 5:47 pm #

    are these true pics…………? if so its AMAZING !!!!

  7. Ohstewartsr June 28, 2011 at 1:43 am #

    Thanks to all the divers, sometimes it is the big things in like that count

  8. Ohstewartsr June 28, 2011 at 1:43 am #

    Thanks to all the divers, sometimes it is the big things in like that count

  9. Ohstewartsr June 28, 2011 at 1:43 am #

    Thanks to all the divers, sometimes it is the big things in like that count

  10. Jeffrey Titelius June 19, 2011 at 8:05 pm #

    God bless all of you for taking the time and the resources to save this intelligent denizen of the sea from certain death.  I was moved to tears reading this and seeing the photos of the whale giving thanks to each of the divers!   

  11. Eda O Donnell December 14, 2010 at 9:12 am #

    Wow.

  12. Trix December 9, 2010 at 12:24 am #

    A shame these pics have nothing to do with this 2005 story.

  13. Rossana Zubiate November 30, 2010 at 10:03 am #

    I was wondering if there is a video on this amazing story. Thank you. Rossana

    • scribblechick November 30, 2010 at 12:45 pm #

      Hi Rossana,

      Oh, we wish there was, too, but there isn’t any video. Just the amazing photos. – Global Animal

  14. robert bond November 26, 2010 at 3:30 pm #

    just amazing heres living proof that these ceteceans can think,feel,and love
    one day ways of communication will be establish whith these wonderful creatures
    and hi just hope they will forgive us for the pain and suffering we brouth on them and there families.

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