A marine research group says a humpback whale calf suffered a cut and bruising after it was hit by a BC Ferries vessel near Port McNeill last week, but that it is likely to survive.
The whale, a young humpback born in 2022 known as Crochet, was swimming off of the northeast end of Vancouver Island on Thursday (Aug. 29) when it was struck. The Marine Education & Research Society says BC Ferries immediately reported the hit and their researchers were able to quickly locate Crochet.
The calf sustained a gash to its upper right fluke – a part of its tail – as well as bruising to the right side of its body.
The marine group says it monitored Crochet for three hours and believes it is likely to survive.
In a statement, BC Ferries confirmed its Island Aurora vessel was the one to hit the whale. The ferry runs routes between Alert Bay, Port McNeill and Malcolm Island.
"We are deeply concerned about the whale incident on August 29. The whale unexpectedly emerged in close proximity to our vessel, and our crew quickly followed protocols, stopping the vessel's propellers to prevent further harm and immediately reporting the incident to our operations center, Fisheries & Oceans Canada, local researchers, and the 'Namgis First Nation."
The Marine Education & Research Society says it will continue to monitor Crochet's well-being and that studying scars can actually help them to learn about how serious a threat collisions pose and how best to avoid them. The group thanked BC Ferries for its transparency in reporting the incident.
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