Heartbreaking: Three Infant Dolphins Found Dead On Mississippi Shores

Featured Image Credit: WLOX
By Sarah Sharkey

Three baby bottlenose dolphins were found dead on Long Beach in Mississippi in the span of a week. They were all found within approximately a mile of each other.

The director of the Institute of Marine Mammal Studies, Dr. Solangi had this to say about the discovery “This is kind of odd that this many babies are dead in such a short time. Something may be going but it’s still early in the season. We will continue to watch this very carefully.”

Image Credit: Caters News Agency

By the time Solangi had found them, they had apparently been dead for at least four days. Solangi and his team went out to the dolphins and are working to find out exactly why they died. His colleague Lauren Cooley collected samples from the dolphins and sent them to Mississippi State for testing.

It is hoped that these deaths are an isolated incident and not a predictor of a larger problem in the ecosystem. This hope comes from the fact that it is still very early in the birthing season. However, if there is something going on Solangi will find out. Solangi said “If they are doing well that means the environment is doing well. If something is wrong, they would be the ones to reflect that change. By monitoring them, we are able to tell what’s going on in the environment and how it would affect us.”

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