Underwater photographer John Kowitz has traveled the globe documenting the incredible underwater world. His beautiful photography and films capture the ocean’s most remarkable creatures, many of which are under threat due to commercial fisheries, pollution, and other environmental impacts. During a recent trip departing from the Hawaiian coast, Kowitz and his team witnessed this issue firsthand when he spotted two humpback whales in distress.
As soon as Kowitz launched his drone, he noticed one of the whales was dragging hundreds of feet of fishing gear and chains that were deeply embedded in the animal’s head. “I was excited to see the group of whales from the aerial perspective, but the moment my drone was above the whales my excitement turned to dismay as I noticed an extensive amount of line dragging behind the whale, embedded in its skin just behind its head,” Kowitz told My Modern Met. “It appeared as if it had been there for quite some time.”
Fortunately, the boat’s captain was trained in whale disentanglement and called the relevant National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) authorities. While they waited for the experts to arrive with the right equipment, Kowitz and his team spent over two and a half hours documenting the whale, both above and below water, in order to give the rescue team as much information as possible.
Kowitz and his crew stayed with the whale until the rescue team arrived from Maui with everything they needed to disentangle the whale. He recalled, “Unfortunately we had to get guests back so we had to leave, but we spoke with the teams after and they said the whale immediately started swimming faster as soon as all the gear was cut off.”
After about five hours of meticulous work, the skilled crew managed to remove 251 feet of line, 10 feet of chain, and several hooks from the marine mammal. “All in all, an approximate 320 feet of gear was removed from the whale,” revealed Kowitz. “An asymmetrical cut was finally made near the mouth of the animal, which should allow the whale to shake free the line running through its mouth with ease now that all that drag had been removed.”
Kowitz explained that the whale was likely caught up in equipment from crab fisheries in Alaska, and that it likely swam from Alaska to Hawaii, all while being entangled and in pain. He told My Modern Met that helping to free the whale was bittersweet, saying, “We were overjoyed we could help but it sad to see the devastating impact commercial fisheries have on the ocean and the beautiful creatures inhabiting it.”
Find out more about Kowitz’s rescue effort in the video below and discover his stunning underwater photography on Instagram.
During a recent expedition off the Hawaiian coast, underwater photographer John Kowitz discovered a humpback whale entangled in hundreds of feet of fishing line and chain, so he helped save its life.
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His beautiful photography captures the ocean’s most remarkable creatures, many of which are unfortunately under threat due to commercial fisheries.
