Orphaned DOLPHIN thrives at Florida sanctuary after he was found gravely ill next to mom’s corpse
An orphaned DOLPHIN thrives at the Florida sanctuary after being flown in from Texas, where he was found critically ill next to his mother’s dead body.
- The dolphin, named Ranger, was found in Texas in June 2021 next to the body of his mother who suffered from a respiratory infection and dehydration.
- The mammal was too young to survive on its own, so it was airlifted to the Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Florida.
- On Monday, workers at the facility said Ranger was thriving and had “partners to play with.”
A rescued juvenile dolphin that was airlifted from Texas to the Florida Keys about a year ago is thriving and interacting with other dolphins at a marine mammal facility, authorities said Monday.
The orphaned male calf nicknamed Ranger was discovered in June 2021.
He was stranded near Goose Island State Park, near Corpus Christi, and was suffering from a respiratory infection and dehydration.
Rescued near its dead mother, the young bottlenose dolphin was deemed too young to feed and survive in the wild.
Linda Erb, vice president of animal care and training at the Florida Keys Dolphin Research Center, greets Ranger bottlenose dolphins, left, and Gypsi, right
Ranger, left, and Gypsi, right, jump out of the water at the Dolphin Research Center on Monday
The National Marine Fisheries Service chose the Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Florida, as Ranger’s permanent home after he was temporarily cared for at the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi.
‘Dolphins are very social; they live in a family, they depend on that family even to learn how to fish,” said Linda Erb, vice president of animal care and training at the Dolphin Research Center.
“Without a mother, without a family, this little boy would have starved, he wouldn’t have known how to be a wild dolphin.”
Erb said Ranger (pictured with her) is thriving and enjoys playing with his friends.
Erb said his team’s main goal has been to make sure Ranger, now about 3, learned to socialize with other dolphins in a natural lagoon in the center after his release from a necessary five-week quarantine in a group. doctor.
“The Ranger that lived in our medical pool is a different dolphin than the Ranger that lives here today,” Erb said.
“He is fully adapted to the family and has surrogate mothers who help take care of him.
He has friends he plays with.