Scientists in the U.S. state of Oregon were forced to euthanize a young humpback whale entangled in fishing gear on 16 November, renewing environmental NGO criticisms of the state’s Dungeness crab fishery and its potential for interacting with whales.
Oregon State Parks alerted the public to a stranded humpback on a beach near Yachats, Oregon on 16 November, and the Oregon Marine Mammal Stranding Network and Oregon State Police both responded to the stranding. According to reporting by the Oregonian, attempts to remove the whale from the beach were unsuccessful, and the whale was euthanized at 3 p.m. on 16 November.
“It’s a very sad, tragic situation,” Lisa Balance with the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University told OPB. “There’s no way to spin this positively. I know the general public is heartbroken.”
According to scientists the whale, which is 3 years old or younger, was likely caught up in crab-fishing equipment.
The incident has renewed calls from environmental groups for the Oregon crab industry to do more to reduce the amount of vertical lines and crab gear that could potentially entangle whales.
“The whale’s death is a painful reminder of a preventable problem: entanglement in fishing gear,” Oceana Fisheries Campaign Director Ben Enticknap said in a release. “Despite steps to reduce the amount of commercial crab gear and close certain areas off Oregon in the late spring and summer, too many whales continue to get entangled and die. Entanglements in Oregon crab gear continue to be at record levels, and this is the third confirmed entanglement in Oregon crab gear this year following three confirmed in 2024.”
Oregon extended limits on Dungeness crab trap gear in 2023 in a bid to protect migrating whales form entanglement – including additional late-season buoy tags, setting new seasonal limits on trap numbers and depth sets. Oregon and California also delayed the start of the commercial Dungeness crab seasons in 2024 in part due to the presence of humpback whales, and all but a small portion of Oregon’s fishery remained closed until January 2025.
As Oregon’s crab fishery grapples with whale entanglements, pilot programs like on-demand crab fishing gear – which only deploys a vertical line when fishers are nearby – have begun to gain traction on the west coast. The California Fish and Game Commission and the Department of Fish and Wildlife voted in December 2024 to increase the number of fishers who can participate in a 2025 pilot of on-demand crab fishing gear, building on the existing pilot program of 19 commercial fishers.
Enticknap said Oregon needs to do more to prevent entanglements, and follow California’s lead.
“Experimental trials in the California Dungeness crab fishery show that pop-up gear is profitable, reliable, and safe for whales,” he said. “As fishermen, manufacturers, and state wildlife officials embrace this gear innovation, the National Marine Fisheries Service and Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission must take stronger action to protect threatened and endangered whales.”
