Dolphins Stranded Off Fla. Keys
Rescuers struggled Thursday to save dozens of stranded dolphins in waters off the Florida Keys, with many volunteers standing in water for hours to support the animals.
About 110 of the rough-toothed dolphins arrived on sand flats near Marathon, south of Miami, on Wednesday night, said Blair Mase, regional coordinator for strandings at the National Marine Fisheries Service.
About 25 swam out again to the ocean and four died. The others were still being supported by animal rescuers and volunteers in shallow water or had been taken into deeper water in a fenced-off canal area where they could swim freely.
Rescuers did not know yet what pushed this group too close to land, but Mase said rough-toothed dolphins were highly sociable. That made them “common mass-stranders -- if one or two are ill, the rest will follow them.”
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
