November 6, 2025 — The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has begun efforts to prevent often deadly entanglements of Pacific humpback whales in fishing nets.
NMFS announced on Oct. 31 the establishment of its West Coast Take Reduction Team to address the incidental mortality and serious injury of California, Oregon, Washington, plus the Central America/Southern Mexico and mainland Mexico stocks of humpback whales in the Washington, Oregon, and California sablefish pot fishery.
The team is tasked with developing consensus recommendations to reduce incidental mortality and serious injury in this fishery to levels approaching zero mortality and serious injury for each stock within five years of implementation of the plan.
The team’s first meeting is scheduled for Nov. 20, to be held virtually.