A two-month-old humpback whale calf entangled in polyurethane fishing net with buoys attached, was being monitored by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service late on Wednesday in waters south of Eden.
But by Thursday morning, officials said they had lost sight of the mother and calf.
Victorian parks and wildlife department was being made aware of the pair as they travelled south.
The fishing net is reportedly wrapped over the head of the calf much like a veil, passing through its mouth. The entangled netting may stop the calf from feeding from its mother, who remains with the calf.
The two humpback whales were making their way south down the coast.
Jenny Robb from the Eden-based Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre has spoken with authorities monitoring the situation.
She advised The Magnet that the NPWS is bringing in a leading expert on whale disentanglement to oversee any possible attempt to free the calf.
Ms Robb also advised that it is likely attempts will be made to attach a buoy with a satellite receiver to one of the whales to track their progress as night falls.
This will assist authorities in monitoring the condition of both the calf and its mother.
Humpback Whale Calf Entangled off the coast of Eden
National Parks reported on Thursday morning that it had lost sight of the whale calf late on Wednesday.
The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is now monitoring the condition of a humpback whale calf which had been sighted this morning off the southern tip of Twofold Bay near Eden entangled in a fishing net.
The whale was reported to be moving slowly south by a fishing boat that relayed the information to the Eden Coastal Rescue who in turn passed the report to the NPWS at Merimbula.
Shortly after the fishing boat departed company with the whale, a research vessel from the Pacific Whale Foundation, undertaking research in the area, arrived on the scene and is accompanying the whale and providing information about the whale’s welfare and location by phone to the NPWS.
A response to the situation has been initiated by staff at the Far South Coast Region of the NPWS in Merimbula. A coordinated response involving from the NSW Water Police, Pacific Whale Foundation research vessel, Parks Victoria and the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment staff has been put in place.
Incident Controller Steven Dovey said “ An NPWS vessel from Narooma had been deployed carrying trained disentanglement personnel and equipment and is currently on its way to the scene. In the meantime a Ranger from Merimbula has been picked up by the Eden Water Police vessel and is going out to assess the whale, Plans will be made in an effort to assist the whale calf depending on the reports back from the observations at sea”.
Mr Dovey explained that while all attempts would be made to assist the whale calf, the presence of a protective mother would make a disentanglement operation very difficult and extremely dangerous.
"An adult whale can be up to 14 meters long and weigh in at 40 tonnes. While all efforts would be made to disentangle the whale, the safety of staff is a major determinant as to whether such an operation can be undertaken.”
“An experienced whale disentanglement Ranger will assess the safety issues and determine whether an attempt to cut the whale free can be undertaken”
said Mr. Dovey.
“If a disentanglement team cannot get near the calf, we hope to attach a satellite buoy to the entanglement so that the movement of the whale can be tracked overnight and if the situation persist until tomorrow, it is likely we will be working with disentanglement personnel from Parks Victoria and the Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment” he explained.
The NPWS and Pacific Whale Foundation will continue to monitor the progress of the whale and the behaviour of the calf and mother.
The disentanglement team from Narooma is due to arrive on the scene at approximately 2pm on Wednesday.
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