‘Unprecedented’ stranding of bottlenose dolphins on Cape Cod prompts large emergency response

BREWSTER, Mass. — An “unprecedented” number of bottlenose dolphins were rescued Tuesday morning after becoming stranded.

According to the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), a total of 14 dolphins were stranded Monday afternoon at Linnell Landing, although 3 were deceased upon arrival.

The remaining 11 dolphins were fighting for their lives as the tide slowly rose.

“The team immediately began preparing to refloat them with the changing tide,” said Kira Kasper, Biologist and Animal Responder at IFAW.

The stranding marked the largest bottlenose dolphin mass stranding in the Northeast region, according to the IFAW.

After rescuing the pod, Monday’s dolphins were marked with temporary identification tags, with one dolphin fitted with a temporary satellite tag to track its movements post-release.

Using this satellite tag, researchers saw the dolphins had in fact re-stranded themselves on Lieutenant Beach in Wellfleet.

“Just before 7 a.m. the next morning, we learned that all 11 dolphins had restranded at Lieutenant Island in Wellfleet,” reported Kasper. “The tide was incoming until 11:16 a.m., but the dolphins could not be released where they stranded. Our team moved quickly to extract the animals from treacherous mud, provide necessary health assessments and treatments, and transport the dolphins to Herring Cove in Provincetown, where they were all released back to the ocean.”

Pictures show dozens of rescuers aiding the dolphins back to deeper waters.

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“This mass stranding comes toward the end of an unprecedented summer for our team due to the sheer number of dolphin strandings,” Kasper said.

Part of the reason for the strandings is Cape Cod’s topography, which features shallow waters, complex tidal movements, and sandbars, according to researchers.

“Since the end of June, the team has responded to 175 live stranded dolphins, which is over 2.5 times our annual average,” said Kasper.

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