Mother Dolphin Found Dead Days After Trapped Calf Was Euthanized

A mother dolphin has been found dead just days after its calf became trapped and was euthanized.

The calf was put to sleep on Saturday. Officers from British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) were called to the River Great Ouse near Pymoor, Cambridgeshire, in England, and found the marine mammal trapped in long, thick reeds. The calf had swum up to 45 miles inland and became very distressed after wedging itself deep into the weeds, the BDMLR reported.

Rescuers had hoped that the mother of the calf, which was not seen at the time of rescue, would find her way back to deeper waters, but she was found dead just a few days later. "There was some minor visible trauma to the dolphin [calf's] dorsal area and its breathing rate was elevated," the BDMLR said.

Dolphins are extremely sociable animals, and often rely on each other for support during their younger years.

The calf's trauma injuries are ones that are consistent with stranding, BDMLR said. The adult female, when found dead, did not have any such signs.

"The Cetacean Stranding Investigation Programme (CSIP) also confirmed the smaller dolphin found on Saturday was probably not maternally dependent, although likely to have been socially dependent," the BDMLR added.

As there was no sign of the mother at the time of the rescue, rescuers assumed the calf had become separated from her before it became stranded. While trying to rescue the young mammal, they attempted to refloat it into the river.

"With the uncertainty of whether the mother was in the river and just out of human sight and hearing, and with the dolphin's breathing returning to normal parameters, the decision was made to refloat the dolphin in the river, and observe for as long as possible in the low light in case it were to restrand," BDMLR said.

"The dolphin initially started to swim down river but quickly stopped and was carried back by the flow of the river to where it had started. The dolphin's course was corrected but again it made little effort to swim and was just being carried back to the river bank and reeds."

A necropsy on both dolphins will take place. The sea lies around 25 miles from where the dolphin calf was found.

Marine mammals all belong in the open sea, but they can occasionally become stranded in rivers after becoming disoriented. Stranding can be incredibly dangerous for them as they need to be submerged in water at all times to regulate their temperature.

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