Sea creature spotted with ‘deep gash’ at Alaska national park, rangers say
A sea creature was spotted with a “deep gash” off the coast of Alaska, and now rangers are looking for answers.
On June 27, Janet Neilson, a biologist with the Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, saw an adult humpback whale near Willoughby Island with an injury to its dorsal fin, mostly likely from a collision with a boat, according to a July 1 news release by the National Park Service.
The wound, a 1-foot-deep cut that exposed the whale’s blubber, looked “fresh,” possibly only hours old, rangers said.
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Neilson believes from the magnitude of the cut, the whale, identified as #2583, had been hit by a medium- to large-sized boat but was “diving and appeared to be behaving normally,” the release said.
“Park biologists are consulting with marine mammal experts to understand the whale’s likelihood of survival with such a severe injury,” officials said.
Although researchers don’t know the whale’s gender, it has been seen in the area since 2013, rangers said.
Other than vessel strikes, humpback whales face threats such as fishing gear entanglement and ocean noise, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
This marks the second vessel strike of the year, after an adult whale identified as #1019 was seen with a “shallow propeller wound behind her dorsal fin” in Icy Strait, rangers said.
To ensure the safety of these whales, park superintendents implemented “whale waters speed” restrictions to “reduce the risk of whale/vessel collisions and disturbance in areas where whales congregate to feed,” rangers said.
Now, rangers say they are turning to the public to learn what happened so they can better “understand collisions and develop better preventative measures to protect these iconic and long-lived animals.”
Anyone with information regarding whale #2583 is asked to call 907-697-2230, rangers said.
This story was originally published July 2, 2025 at 11:36 AM with the headline "Sea creature spotted with ‘deep gash’ at Alaska national park, rangers say."