New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS) has added extra staff to its Large Whale Disentanglement Team for the 2024 humpback whale season.
The 11 newly trained staff will be based on the Hunter Central Coast and takes to 45 the number of experts ready to free whales that get tangled in fishing nets during their annual migration along the east coast of Australia.
The first humpbacks for the season were recently sighted off Sydney in the past few days. The stress from being caught in discarded nets can lead to fatigue, inujury and death of the whales.
If you see a distressed or entangled whale, contact the NPWS on 13000PARKS (1300 072 757) or ORRCA on 02 9415 3333.
It can take several days to free an entangled whale as they often need to be tracked and slowed down before being set free.
Last year, 13 whales were successfully disentangled along the New South Wales coastline.
Source: NSW Government 17 May 2024
