The Italian coastguard is struggling to free a sperm whale trapped in an illegal fishing net off the coast of the Aeolian Islands in Sicily.

The whale, which has been named “Fury” in a nod to its efforts to free itself, was spotted struggling to escape the net on Saturday, and a team of divers and biologists has been working to liberate it since.

The coastguard said the size of the sperm whale – which are the largest of the toothed whales and have the biggest brain of any creature known to have lived on Earth – has made the rescue mission more challenging.

The whale’s agitated state has also made it especially difficult to release it from the netting, but it is being continuously monitored by the coastguard.

It is the second time in less than a month that rescuers have had to free a sperm whale caught in a fishing net.

Biologist Monica Blasi told Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica: “These damn fishing nets are doing a huge damage.

“I haven’t slept in 36 hours ... divers managed to take off some of the net but then it started to move and it became too dangerous.”

The Italian coastguard said it has clamped down on unauthorised fishing and has seized more than 100km of illegal fishing nets in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea since January.

Additional reporting by Reuters

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