Animal rescuers save more than 100 dolphins during mass stranding event around Cape Cod
WELLFLEET, Massachusetts — Animal rescuers were able to lure more than 100 dolphins from the shallow waters around Cape Cod last weekend after about 125 of the Atlantic white-sided dolphins went missing. got stranded.
An estimated 13 dolphins died and one had to be euthanized, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare, which helped lead the rescue effort. The nonprofit said it was the largest mass stranding it had dealt with in the Cape’s 26-year history.
There is no clear reason why these dolphins stranded, rescuers said. Cape Cod is known as a global hotspot for strandings because of the curvature of its coastline and the fluctuation of its tides.
Teams in Massachusetts discovered a pod of 10 Atlantic white-sided dolphins in a dangerously shallow area at sunrise Saturday morning and managed to herd the animals to deeper water.
Scouts also found a second pod of 25 dolphins swimming close to the shore near Eastham, the organization said. Teams worked to drive them away as the tide receded during the morning.
Ten dolphins died during Friday’s stranding at The Gut — or Great Island — in Wellfleet, on the Herring River. The Gut is a common site for dolphin strandings, which experts say is partly due to its hook-like shape and extreme tidal fluctuations.
Misty Niemeyer, the organization’s stranding coordinator, said over the weekend that rescuers faced many challenges on Friday, including difficult mud conditions and the fact that the dolphins were scattered over a large area.
“It was a 12-hour, grueling response in the blazing sun, but the team was able to overcome the various challenges and give the dolphins the best chance of survival,” Niemeyer said in a statement.
The team set out on foot, herding the animals into deeper water, then using three small boats equipped with underwater pingers, which make sounds underwater, the organization said.
Among those helping with the rescue effort were more than 25 of the organization’s employees and 100 trained volunteers. The group also received support from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, the Center for Coastal Studies, AmeriCorps of Cape Cod and the New England Aquarium.