The Department of Environment and Coastal Resources (DECR) and the local fishing community continue to celebrate the recent rescue of a humpback whale which was trapped among the reefs next to Long Cay (south east of Grand Turk).
The Department was first contacted about the matter on Friday April 22nd (Good Friday), and local fishermen indicated that the whale may have been trapped for up to three weeks. It was thought that the whale may have been travelling with her calf and another pod member when it lost its way through a small cut in the reef and was thereafter unable to find its way out.
The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) is a species of baleen whale with adults ranging in length from 12 to 16 metres (39 to 52 ft) and weighing up to 36,000 kilograms (79,000 lb). Humpback whales are known to migrate through the Turks Islands Passage passing Salt Cay and Grand Turk every year between the months of February and April after giving birth, and then make their way back to the polar waters to feed during summer.
With global populations still struggling to rebound from intense hunting during the 1960’s, the DECR decided that every effort should be made to free this whale and so contacted the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS), a global charity organization established in 1987 dedicated to the conservation and welfare of whales and dolphins.
Under their guidance, the Department with the assistance of Oasis Divers (Grand Turk) went into the area where the whale was trapped late in the evening with a small boat. As recommended by the WDCS, the banging of solid wood and plastic objects was used to generate sound under water to guide the whale
through the cut back into open ocean.
Because of the darkness the team could not determine if their efforts were successful, but when they returned the following day, with an additional boat
hired from a local fisherman and a catamaran, to increase the noise level, they found, to everyone’s satisfaction that the whale was gone.
The DECR would like to thank Sue Rocca of WDCS, Oasis Divers and the local fishing community for their assistance in freeing this trapped whale which would have died had it remained in the area much longer.
The Department encourages members of the public to continue to report any incidents or situations relating to the welfare and preservation of both the marine
and coastal environment.
