SAD UPDATE, NOVEMBER 24, 2011: The baby dolphin that was found last week (and pictured below) died early Saturday, said Richard Treasury, director of the NGO Wildlife Rescue Marina, El País. The baby failed to gain weight and succumbed to the stress of his ordeal.
Treasury expected in the coming weeks to find more of these mammals on the Uruguayan coast. In the spring of 2010 were five who passed through his care. Three died and two returned to the sea.
To prepare for the increase in baby dolphins, the NGO conditioning facilities received a donation of a special pool. Small animals should be treated in a separate space from the noise and food brought from abroad, said Treasury.
According to the Director of Marine Life Rescue, in recent years increasing noise pollution in the sea, caused by engine boats with high-pitched sounds mislead the dolphins-and pesticide pollution is affecting marine species. This type of dolphin species belongs to the Franciscan or Silver, who lives in the Rio de la Plata and is considered vulnerable.
At Global Animal, we mourn the death of the little dolphin. We will continue our coverage of the dolphin’s habitat destruction. – Global Animal
(BABY DOLPHIN RESCUE) – A 7-day-old female La Plata river dolphin has been rescued on Uruguay’s Punta Colorada beach. The baby dolphin was so young that the umbilical cord was still attached. Director Richard Tesore of the SOS Rescate de Fauna Marina rehabilitation center confirmed the dolphin was safely transported to their marine animal rescue center in Piriapolis.
“The baby dolphin is weak, but is being cared for at SOS Rescate,” Tesore told Global Animal today.
Last November, Tesore and the team of SOS Rescate volunteers rescued an injured 10-day-old La Plata dolphin. “Nipper,” as the baby dolphin came to be known, died of hyperthermia a couple weeks after being rescued.
The prognosis is usually poor for infant dolphins who are separated from their mothers. The dolphins rescued are usually also sick or injured from being tangled in fishing line.
The La Plata is a river dolphin found in the coastal Atlantic waters of South America and is able to live in both the ocean and saltwater estuaries. It is listed as “vulnerable” in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Large populations of the species are under threat from incidental capture from fishing gear, in particular, gillnets. It is estimated that 2000-4000 La Plata dolphins die each year from overfishing, damming, and sub-aquatic sonar pollution.
Global Animal is in contact with Richard Tesore at SOS Rescate de Fauna Marina and will provide updates on the tiny river dolphin’s health as well as exclusive footage and news as it becomes available. — Global Animal
Photos Courtesy of Reuters
