Six-foot-long common dolphin dies after it washed up and became stranded on beach near Weston-super-Mare
- Dolphin died after it was stranded at Sandy Bay near Weston-super-Mare today
- The six-foot-long dolphin showed signs of life blowing air through its blowhole
- It died shortly after it was found despite help from marine mammal medics
A six-foot-long common dolphin died after it was found washed up on a beach in north Somerset today.
A team of marine mammal medics was called to reports of a stranded dolphin at Sandy Bay near Weston-super-Mare.
The dolphin had washed up on the high tide and was initially showing signs of life by blowing air through it’s blowhole but died shortly after.
Coastguards from Weston attended the scene along with the Burnham Area Rescue Boat’s (BARB) fully trained marine mammal medics and British Divers Marine Life Rescue, who specialise in marine strandings.
A dolphin died after it was found washed up on the high tide and stranded at Sandy Bay near Weston-super-Mare in north Somerset today
A team of marine mammal medics attended the scene and six-foot-long common dolphin initially showed signs of life, blowing air through it’s blowhole
The team walked out across the mudflats to reach the stranded dolphin where they assessed its condition.
Pictures show the team examining the dolphin and pouring water over the mammal before carrying it’s dead body off the beach.
‘It had initially been showing signs of life, with air being blown through its blowhole, but sadly it was declared deceased during the incident,’ said BARB spokesman Mark Newman.
‘A sad ending for such a wonderful creature.’
Sadly, the dolphin could not be saved and was declared dead shortly after it was found
According to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) charity, the reasons for a live dolphin coming onto the shore is often because they are old, sick, injured or disorientated
The body, estimated to be around 200kg, was taken off the beach for formal logging and further investigation to assess the cause of the death.
According to the Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) charity, the reasons for a live dolphin coming onto the shore is often because they are old, sick, injured or disorientated.
A government report published in 2019 on whale and dolphin strandings in the UK during the last seven years revealed that the number of strandings increased by 15% on the previous period.
A total of 4,896 whales, dolphins and porpoises died on beaches between 2011 and 2017.
The body, estimated to be around 200kg, was taken off the beach for further investigation to assess the cause of the death