Young Humpback Whale Freed in Dramatic Sydney Harbor Rescue

A young humpback whale was successfully liberated from fishing tackle in Sydney Harbor after nearly 24 hours. The juvenile whale, first spotted in distress on Thursday afternoon by a whale watching cruise ship, was freed by wildlife rescuers on Friday morning. Upon release, it swam toward the Sydney Heads and the open Pacific Ocean, according to Macquarie University whale expert Vanessa Pirotta.

The rescue operation, involving boats, helicopters, and drones, commenced Thursday and resumed at dawn on Friday. Pirotta commented on the whale's fatigue, noting that its breathing indicated extreme exhaustion. "Is the whale OK? I hope, I don't really know. The reality is this animal has been through a huge ordeal," Pirotta told Australian Broadcasting Corp. Jessica Fox from the Organization for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans in Australia explained that buoys were used to slow the whale for rescuers to cut away the rope.

Pirotta also mentioned that although it was unclear why the whale stayed in the harbor, this decision simplified the rescue. She highlighted the challenging circumstances, emphasizing the difficulty of disentangling a whale, especially in such a busy harbor.

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Word Count: 200 (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)