UPDATED: See update at bottom of page

Entangled Dolphin Calf Dies During Rescue Attempt

by Keith Rittmaster,
Natural Science Curator
NC Maritime Museum
Jan. 13, 2005

On Tuesday, January 11^th. off our NC Maritime Museum docks in Gallants Channel we saw a familiar dolphin named “Yang” (#1185). She has a very distinct dorsal fin and we have had her in our photo-ID catalog since 1992. We know she is a female because we have seen her before with a young calf. In fact, in October ´04 we photographed her with a young calf, one that was probably born around May, ´04. On Tuesday she was also with her young calf but this time her calf appeared to be entangled in fishing line, struggling at the surface for every breath, and unable to extend its body to swim properly. It was just Yang and her calf. No other dolphins were nearby.

We contacted some of our local colleagues (Vicky Thayer at Duke, Aleta Hohn and Gretchen Lovewell at NOAA/NMFS, and others) who came out on a boat with us to have a look and help evaluate the condition of the calf. Since we were observing what appeared to be a life-threatening human-induced injury, we began to pull together a group of local professional colleagues and volunteers to attempt a rescue coordinated and led by Aleta. On the morning of January 13^th. 20+ people from 6 local institutions on very short notice in 6 boats set out with the goal of trying to safely locate, capture, disentangle, and release the calf. Within an hour of leaving the dock in light rain, we found (thanks to Janet Frye on her boat “Daydream”) Yang and her calf. The tide was high but they were near a sandbar so Blake Price, Dave Skinner, and Kevin Brown of the NC Dept. of Marine Fisheries deployed a large-mesh seine net and captured Yang and her calf on the first attempt. While restraining the 2 dolphins next to each other, we soon realized that the calf was horribly injured as a result of entanglement in a jumble of monofilament fishing line stretching from his mouth to his tail. Craig Harms, the attendant veterinarian from NCSU/CMAST, was considering euthanasia when the baby died in our arms in front of his mother, “Yang”. We released the mother.

The necropsy revealed that the fishing line had cut both sides of the mouth down into the bones (mandibles) and cut deeply near the tail almost to the spine. The outcome, although disappointing because we were unable to save the calf, left us with the rewarding feeling that we did the best we could have and forged relationships that are likely to be helpful in the future. It will be interesting to see if/when Yang joins up with other dolphins and gives birth again. If we had gotten to the baby sooner perhaps we could have saved him. We’re all feeling pretty deflated right now. We hope that those who read this will help educate others about the negative impacts of litter, particularly of discarded monofilament fishing line, on marine wildlife. Thanks for everyone’s support and help, especially the following people who assisted with the preparation and rescue attempt:

For more information please visit capelookoutstudies.org or e-mail krittmaster@ec.rr.com.

Click photo for large uncompressed version of photo.

UPDATE: We’ve decided to name Yang’s calf “Yaholo” which is Seminole for “One who yells”. We’ve added a slide show from the pictures of Yang and Yaholo to the fishing line (monofilament) recycling project page. That page is dedicated to Yaholo – we hope that he will continue to “yell” through this page so that everyone learns how monofilament recycling can help protect wild dolphins.

Humpback Whale Sighting

Jan. 3, 2005

Today we encountered a humpback whale on our way to the NC Maritime Museum’s field station at Cape Lookout. The whale appeared to be a juvenile and was associated with menhaden purse seining boats that were encircling a school of menhaden. Volunteer John Russell got a great photo of the underside of the tail (“flukes”) which can be used to identify the individual whale.

Click photo to enlarge

Humpback Whale

Humpback Whale Flukes

New wheels for the Cape!

Thank you Donors!  |  Donor List

  It took a long-time volunteer and friend like John Brewer to know just what we needed in a vehicle for the museum’s field station at Cape Lookout. “Let me help you find a good truck for a great program” he said. And it took the thoughtfulness and generosity of the donors listed here. So when the Chevy Blazer (donated by Cherry Point MCAS) finally had to be retired this summer after 7 years of hard duty hauling people, gear, supplies, and dead whales at Cape Lookout, a loose conspiracy was formed to purchase a replacement vehicle for the Cape Lookout Studies Program. A

fundraiser led by long-time supporter Haywood Holderness raised $8,945 from 36 people from 6 states. This enabled us to purchase a 1984 4-wheel-drive Chevrolet Scottsdale pickup truck. John then spent 10 days customizing it for the Cape by building a top carrier, installing a bumper push bar, taking out the carpeting and weather-stripping (they trap sand, salt, and moisture), replacing electric window cranks and door locks with manual ones (the salt air at the Cape is hard on electronics), replacing worn-out parts, installing large tires on wide rims, and painting it top and

bottom, inside and out, with the most rust resistant coatings available. The result is pictured above. Thanks also to Kittrell’s Auto Parts in Havelock and Atlantic Auto Salvage for their help in this project. Thousands of students, young and old alike

will benefit from the generosity. If you’re feeling left out because you’re not included here, don’t worry, donations are being accepted for new projects!

CAPE LOOKOUT STUDIES DONOR LIST –

$ 1000+ – DolphinRalph & Tabbie Merrill, Beaufort, NC Bruce & Regina McCutcheon, Beaufort, NC Bill Transou, Durham, NC Bud & Anna Doughton, Raleigh, NC	$ 500+ – Sea TurtleHaywood & Mary Holderness, Durham, NC John & Sandra Atkins, Durham, NC Harriette & Hugh Wilde, Beaufort, NC Tom Darden, Raleigh, NC Steve & Pam Hassenfelt, Greensboro, NC
$ 200+ – PelicanGraham & Nora Barden, New Bern, NC Sam & Nancye Bryan, Durham, NC Mike Warlick, Stafford, VA Jim Maxwell, Durham, NC Woody Warburton, Durham, NC John Brewer, Newport, NC Margaret Harker, Morehead City, NC Rusty & Mary Holderness, Tarboro, NC Richard Meissner, Harkers Island, NC	$ 100+ – FlounderBob Barnhill, Tarrboro, NC Alex Denson, Durham, NC Ralph & Sue McCaughan, Durham, NC Sally & Paul Ransford, Chapel Hill, NC Sally Steele, Swansboro, NC Penn Holderness, Orlando, FL Nancy & Tom Reams, Richmond, VA Dail Holderness, Raleigh, NC Tom & Cheryl Walker, Longboat Key, FL Elizabeth Kernan, Mill Valley, CA Jack Jenkins, Morehead City, NC Richard & Joyce Veazey, Stem, NC Worth Dunn, Raleigh, NC Mason Williams, Raleigh, NC Sam Bass, Raleigh, NC Keith Rittmaster, Beaufort, NC
$ 50+ – Fiddler CrabJulian Mann, Raleigh, NC Walker Long, Chapel Hill, NC	$ 25+ – Mosquito