DANA POINT — A gray whale with a large square wire embedded in its head was spotted at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday off Piedras Blancas near San Simeon, according to Alisa Schulman-Janiger, founder of the American Cetacean Society/LA Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project.

On Monday, it was spotted off Goleta, in Santa Barbara County, officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said. Experts believe it will likely reach Pt. Pinos near Monterey Bay on Thursday.

Boat captains in that area have been alerted to keep a lookout for the entangled whale.

“It arrived (near San Simeon) with three other gray whales but was slower and left behind,” Schulman-Janiger reported. “It passed by very close to shore, by NOAA’s Census Reports observer Bernardo Alps.”

The whale was first spotted two miles south of Dana Point Harbor by Capt. Frank Brennan, of Dana Wharf Sportfishing and Whale Watching, about 3:30 p.m on Saturday, April 1.

Brennan, who was on a whale-watching trip at the time, saw what appeared to be a metal frame around the animal’s head as he neared San Juan Rock, right off the Headlands. There were also lines attached to the frame, he said.

He alerted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s marine mammal stranding network coordinator, Justin Viezbicke. Brennan, a member of NOAA’s disentanglement team has spotted several entangled whales already this year. He also let Capt. Dave Anderson, of Capt. Dave’s Dolphin Safari, who leads Orange County’s whale disentanglement team and has been involved in dozens of rescues over the years, know about the whale.

“The whale was being evasive because there were so many boats around it,” Brennan said.

Brennan saw the whale a second time off Laguna Beach in about 120 feet of water. He followed it past Main Beach until Anderson could take over at about 6 p.m.

Fishing gear entanglements have been on the rise in the past three years, according to a report released this week by researchers at NOAA. The report found that there were 71 separate cases of entangled whales reported off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California in 2016.

It was the highest annual total for the West Coast of the United States since NOAA Fisheries started keeping records in 1982.

Anderson relocated the whale just outside Newport Beach Harbor at sunset but did not deploy his tracking buoy because of the unusual way the whale’s head was caught in the trap.

“We felt very uncertain about what damage it would cause to the whale with this unusual entanglement,” Anderson said. “With darkness closing in, we thought it was best to document the last location and hope for the best tomorrow.”

Anderson said he left the whale one mile below the Newport Harbor entrance.

“This is the fourth whale I’ve been involved in trying to rescue in the last two months,” Anderson said.

Viezbicke, NOAA’s California marine mammal stranding coordinator, said the type of gear entangling the whale was something he’s not seen before.

“It’s very troubling,” Viezbicke said. “The tricky part for us is that it’s not just rope. If it really is all metal around the whale, it will be a formidable challenge to get it off. All our gear is used to cut rope.”

Viezbicke said he appreciates the efforts of the Dana Point and Newport Beach boat captains to document and take pictures of the whale.

“We’ll use that to find out where this may have happened,” he said. “The work they are doing to document this is really laying the foundation and opening our eyes to try to prevent these types of things in the future.”

To Rodger Healy, a Capistrano Beach lobster fisherman, photos of the wire frame looked industrial.

“It’s too big to be trap gear,” he said. “It has washers and knuckles on the frame which trappers wouldn’t have because the trap wouldn’t sit flat on the frame. It looks like it could be a rack to suspend oysters or mussels.”

On Sunday morning boat captains continued to look for the entangled whale in Los Angeles County. Dense fog made the search more difficult, Viezbicke said.

But efforts to find it will continue. Boat captains who work along Northern California have been notified, he said.

HOW TO HELP

If you are out on the water and see a whale in distress, call 1-877-SOS-WHALE. The National Marine Fisheries Service also asks that you note:

1. Location of the animal;

2. A detailed description of the color and gauge of rope

3. Location of gear on the whale

4. Color and size of buoys

5. Direction of the whale’s movement, including

whether it is solitary or with a group

6. Behavior of the whale, including whether it is

surfacing or diving, and the length of dive times

7. Species of whale

8. Size and condition of the whale.

They also ask that you take photos and videos of the entangled whale, which can provide valuable information.

Contact the writer: 714-796-2254 or eritchie@scng.com or on Twitter:@lagunaini