The Department of Conservation (DOC) is appealing for sightings off the Otago coast of a whale entangled in rope.
A whale entangled in rope off the Otago coast. Photo: DOC
The whale was spotted yesterday off Taiaroa Head at the end of Otago peninsula by a crew aboard a wildlife cruise boat.
The 12m-long humpback whale had a rope wrapped across its back behind its blowhole and below its fins.
A DOC spokesperson said it wanted to locate the whale so a specialist staff team could cut the line off it.
It said the whale was likely to be moving south down the Otago-Southland coast at up to 100km per day.
A whale entangled in rope off the Otago coast. Photo: DOC