Campobello Whale Rescue Team
Freeing Cetaceans Tangled in Fishing Gear in the Bay of Fundy
Fishermen help endangered North Atlantic right and finback whales which get enmeshed in fishing gear off of Campobello Island. Minke and humpbacks have also been rescued.
A fisherman turned whale watch owner and a few of his close friends are doing their part to save whales that become entangled in fishing gear or trapped in fishing weirs. Highly endangered North Atlantic right whales, humpback, fin and minke whales have all been disentangled by the Campobello Whale Rescue Team (CWRT)
CWRT began after Mackie Greene witnessed a fin whale wrapped in fishing gear while leading a whale watching trip. Since then he and his team have worked with 15 whales, risking their lives driving a little 16 foot Zodiac up next to animals that can be 40 or more feet long, and cutting through the lines entangling them.
Bay of Fundy Whales and Fish
The Bay of Fundy is summer home to large numbers of whales. An important feeding ground for North Atlantic right whales, it is also a rich fishing area, yielding lobster, crab, shrimp, herring, haddock, pollock and cod. Minke, fin and humpback whales are also found here in significant numbers. Campobello Island, just barely over the US border from Maine, is part of New Brunswick and home to the Campobello Whale Rescue Team. CWRT can be in the midst of the Bay's prime whale territory within an hour when a rescue is needed.
Whale Rescue
Mackie trained with the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, pioneers in whale disentangling, and is now a Level Four First Responder. Later, on a trip to Cape Cod to learn more about the whale watching industry, he met members of the New England Aquarium’s Right Whale Research Project who conduct surveys every summer in the Bay of Fundy. Back in Canada, he watched one of their disentangling efforts and offered his critique. They challenged him to do better. He did. The two groups now work closely together when whales are entangled. The Aquarium's researchers are out on the water as often as weather permits. When they find an entangled cetacean, they contact CWRT and stay with the whale until the team arrives.
Mackie and Joe Howlett, a Level Three responder, make up the core of that team. They have worked together long enough to be able to anticipate each other’s moves, the key to a successful rescue. One drives the boat, getting as close in as possible, while the other cuts the entangling lines. They trade off driving and cutting to keep their skills sharp. During a rescue there is seldom time to talk about where to best position the boat or where to cut first, so insight into one job is critical to doing the other. Danny, Robert, or one of several other islanders round out the Campobello Whale Rescue team, tasked with getting photographic evidence and doing whatever else is needed to get the job done.
When not rescuing whales, Mackie runs Island Cruises. He started the whale watching company when he realized that in order to have a boat based business of his own, tourism rather than fishing, was the key.
But Mackie's loyalty to the local fishing industry is clear. He still calls himself a fisherman, and when neighboring fishermen expressed concerns about whale rescues, he was able to honestly state that his goal was to take care of the problem, not stop the fishermen. He and Joe are also often called on to identify gear that has been removed from a whale, a task for which their background gives them insider knowledge.
Campobello Whale Rescue is supported by and works closely with the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), the New England Aquarium and the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies.
