Two Risso’s dolphins stranded off the coast of Cape Cod were rescued and released this week.
Two stranded Risso's dolphins were rescued on Cape Cod this week and released off Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare said they responded to two separate calls of stranded Risso's dolphins on Cape Cod this week.
The first call came in Tuesday night for a dolphin stranded at Ryder's Beach in Truro. Because it was dark and not safe to respond at that time, the conservation agency's marine mammal rescue team responded to the site on Wednesday morning and found the animal alive.
The adult female Risso's dolphin, estimated to weigh about 700 pounds, required more than 30 people to move it into IFAW's mobile dolphin rescue vehicle for transportation to a deeper water release site.
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While the team was busy rescuing that dolphin, they received a second call about a possible stranding of a dolphin calf in Provincetown, just a few miles away. The team proceeded to Provincetown and found the calf stranded alone. It was taken to the mobile dolphin rescue vehicle to join the adult dolphin.
While underway to the release site at Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown, the team was able to conduct diagnostic health tests and treatments on the dolphins and determined that despite stress from the stranding events they were healthy enough to be released.
Both animals were fitted with temporary tags that will allow the team to track their movements at sea.
