Entangled Minke whale off New Quay, 80's/90's

Description

Steve Hartley is the founder of Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre, New Quay. He now runs Dolphin Survey Boat Trips, however previously fished the waters of Cardigan Bay.

A member of our Living Seas Team sat down with Steve, to discuss his memories of life in the Bay. Here, he discusses finding an entangled Minke whale off New Quay Headland.

Recollection as follows:

"It was at the headland…I actually found it that morning. It looked like a log lying down, and I wondered: 'what’s that?' – it was just going up and down slowly. When I got over there, as I say, it was a minke whale! It was absolutely emaciated, nothing left of it - and dragging this bit of, what looked like, trawl net off its nose and going back.

We’d been out that day – I think I came back in and picked up another trip and came back out…it was in the 80’s or 90’s a long time ago. I do remember that Harriet Chapman was on the boat, and I think another 'science bod' was with me…and then Dai Speed was on a speedboat on the other side, and we found it again.

Then there was a search. I think WDCS and Cliff Benson pulled some money together and did an aerial search – though what they thought they’d do when the found it I have no idea, especially in a plane! That was hampered by a lot of fog over the next couple of days, and it just disappeared.
There was nothing we could have done for it anyway – it was quite heavy trawl net: not the fine monofilament, the quite thick orange net off a trawl."

To learn more about Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre, please visit:

• https://www.welshwildlife.org/visitor-centres/cardigan-bay-marine-wildlife-centre/ (link opens in new window)