UP Visayas team rescues stranded dolphin in Leganes

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Responding to a distress call, the Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanology of the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (CFOS-IMFO) at UP Visayas took action to save a stranded bottlenose dolphin at Sitio Pandan, Brgy. Nabitasan, Leganes, Iloilo, on April 13.

Under the leadership of Assistant Professor Dr. Cristy S. Acabado, the IMFO Quick Response Team worked with various stakeholders, including local government units and environmental groups, to rescue the marine mammal.

The dolphin, a female weighing about 100 kilograms and measuring 73 by 13 inches, likely became trapped at low tide and was unable to reach deeper waters.

The team, noting the animal’s rapid heartbeat and semi-closed eyelids, treated it for minor injuries, though no significant trauma was evident.

Efforts to return the dolphin to the ocean were successful, thanks to the collaboration with the Leganes Bantay Dagat, who provided a boat for the rescue.

The stranding of marine wildlife, such as dolphins, whales, and sea turtles, is often attributed to these animals being beached, injured, or unable to return to the water, whether they are found alive or deceased. The IMFO Quick Response Team, comprising faculty, staff, and researchers, is trained for such rescue and post-mortem operations. (Ms. Lenilyn B. Gallos, with sources from IMFO)