A humpback whale that spent more than a day trapped in a fishing net off the coast of Maine is now free, thanks the hard of work of the Maine Marine Patrol.

Over the weekend, several of the patrol officers worked with specialists from the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown, Massachusetts, to cut rope and slowly untangle the whale from the net. Rescuers said that one of the net's lines was wrapped around the tail of the trapped whale at least 30 times. The netting had also become entangled around the whale's head, back, pectoral flipper and through its mouth.

The rescue mission began Friday afternoon, after a whale guide with the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. reported a large humpback was in distress. The marine patrol quickly responded, locating the female whale just off the coast of Maine's Mount Desert Island. Though some progress was made on Friday, rescuers had to take a break overnight. The mission began in earnest again early Saturday morning, just before sunrise, and didn't end until 5 in the afternoon.

It turned out the distressed whale, identified as "Spinnaker," was well known among the research and whale-watching community. The dorsal fin of the 40-foot-long humpback was recognized by one of the scientists with the Center for Coastal Studies.

Wildlife officials said the whale appeared to suffer some minor injuries from the ordeal, but she apparently swam away strongly and quickly as soon as the netting was completely untangled.