Dolphin Stranding After Getting Entangled

On 19th February 2012 A Sekar and M Raja (TREE Foundation’s Sea Turtle Protection Force members) informed Supraja Dharini about a live dolphin stranding after getting entangled in a shore seine net at  Kovalam fishing  Village. As TREE Foundation address the stranding of Sea Turtle, Whales and Dolphins along the Chennai, Kancheepuram and Nellore Coast. 

This is the fourth dolphin recorded form January. About 48  fishermen of Kovalam were fishing using a shore seine net between around 12 noon at about 1.30 they saw 10 dolphins swim close to the net and 2 dolphins swam  between the net, so they started drawing the net to the shore . 

It took 30 minutes for  the net which is like a large bag  to be pulled to the shore and the  2 dolphins were   inside the net, immediately the fishermen carried the dolphins out and released them in the water one dolphin swam away but the 2nd dolphin stranded, Kannan one of the fishermen and the STPF members who were all working with the net immediately went up to the dolphin and saw that it was very weak, but alive, Sekar called Supraja immediately.  She instructed them on how to handle the  dolphin, to hold the dolphin in the water with its blowhole above the water level. 

She reached the beach by 2.45 along with Rahul Muralidharan and Preta the “Marine Mammal Stranding Team” after informing the Wildlife Warden and Forest Ranger about the stranding

.They tried to revive the dolphin which was very weak and moving its fluke(Tail) very slowly,  but it died after a few minutes. As dolphins are air breathing mammals it was not able to breath inside the net. They need to come up to the surface of the sea to breath every 10-15 mins.   

Dolphins swim and identify prey through eco location and they can very well sense nets or any material that is blocking them, but in this case the net was full of 100 large size reef fish and the dolphins would have been able to locate only the moving fish  and not the net behind the fish. It was really sad to see a healthy full grown adult dolphin dying in this way.

 The dolphin was an  adult male Indo Pacific Hump back dolphin as it had all the identifications of a Indo pacific hump-back and the colouring was clearly visible. The dolphin was 2.10meters in length.             

The diameter  near the dorsal fin was 140cms.The dolphins are facing a new and deadlier threat. There are many records to show that they are frequently caught in gillnets,  fishing gear and trawl nets which needlessly kill them. When seeing dead Marine mammals contact Dr Supraja Dharini, Chairperson, TREE Foundation on   9444052242