Not exactly clear when this happened (and right whales should be up north now), but a diver off the coast of Virginia manages to cut some fishing gear free as an entangled right whale swims by.
It could have gone very badly wrong if the gear had entangled the diver, too, and the whale had sounded. So kudos to the diver.
Here’s something to be thankful for. A beautiful whale shark rescue.
Here’s the backstory:
WHALE SHARK RESCUE – November 7, 2012, diving aboard the Solmar V at Roca Partida, near Socorro Island, about 250 miles south of Baja, Mexico.
During the first dive of the morning, we came upon a mature whale shark in some amount of distress due to a large rope cinched around it’s girth. It must have been there for some time, as the rope was encrusted with barnacles, and was cutting deeply into the flesh of the shark.
On the second dive of the morning, we located the same whale shark once again, and with Eddy (dive guest) on the scene with his “Go Pro” camera, we were able to memorialize the rescue. In the video you will see Dave (dive guide) approach the shark from the front, and Dani (dive guide) swim to the shark from above. You will see Dani successfully cut the rope loose, freeing the shark which slowly swims away. At the end, you will see Eddy’s wife, Gina, knuckle-bump Dani, as we all celebrate together.
We brought the rope back to the boat, and found it was about 2 inches in diameter, so perhaps an anchor or mooring line? How it got wrapped around the shark is a mystery.
The Earthist Chronicles 