WELLFLEET, Mass. (AP) — Animal rescuers were trying to keep dozens of dolphins out of the shallow waters around Cape Cod on Saturday after 125 of the creatures they were stranded one day before.
Teams in Massachusetts found a pod of 10 Atlantic white-sided dolphins swimming in a dangerously shallow area at dawn Saturday and managed to get them to deeper water, the International Fund for Animal Welfare said.
Scouts also found a second pod of 25 dolphins swimming close to shore near Eastham, the organization said, and herding efforts continued as the tide receded during the morning.
Ten dolphins died during Friday’s stranding on The Gut, or Big Island, in Wellfleet on the Herring River.
The organization said it was the largest mass stranding it had faced in the Cape during its 26-year history in the area. The gut is a site of frequent strandings, which experts believe is due in part to its hooked shape and extreme tidal fluctuations.
Misty Niemeyer, the organization’s stranding coordinator, said rescuers faced many challenges Friday, including difficult mud conditions and the dolphins being scattered over a large area.
“It was a grueling 12-hour response under the relentless sun, but the team was able to overcome the various challenges and give the dolphins their best chance at survival,” Niemeyer said in a statement.
The team started on foot, taking the creatures into deeper waters, and then used three small boats equipped with underwater detectors, according to the organization.
Among those collaborating in the rescue efforts are more than 25 members of the organization’s staff and 100 trained volunteers. The group also had support from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, the Center for Coastal Studies, AmeriCorps of Cape Cod and the New England Aquarium.
