Fisheries and Oceans Canada says more than 450 feet (137 metres) of rope and other fishing gear was removed from an entangled humpback whale in the waters off Vancouver Island, B.C.

The humpback, which was previously believed to be “Wiggins,” or BCY1469 to researchers, was spotted entangled in the gear off Lasqueti Island – north of Parksville – on Sept. 21.

Crews were able to attach a satellite tag to the animal to keep track of its movements, and two days later, on Sept. 23, crews with the DFO marine mammal rescue team – the DFO whale protection unit – and the Department of National Defence were able to remove the gear from the whale in Nanoose Bay, near the DND base.

At that point, crews confirmed the humpback was not in fact Wiggins.

The operation took a gruelling six hours, and vi

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