Eight dolphins die after 'mass stranding' on New Jersey beach trends now
Eight dolphins died Tuesday after a grisly 'mass stranding' event swamped a New Jersey beach - the latest in a string of mysterious sea-life deaths across the East Coast.
Beachgoers in Sea Island City arrived at the coast in late morning to find the stranded pod of dolphins, and despite lifesaving efforts from crews to keep them hydrated, two were pronounced dead at the scene.
The remaining six dolphins were euthanized several hours later, adding to the more than three dozen cetaceans that have washed up dead in recent months.
Since mid-February, at least six other dolphins have washed ashore in New Jersey alone, while dozens of whales are being routinely discovered up and down the Atlantic coast.
Humpback whales appear to be the most commonly stranded, with at least 16 dying on the region's beaches since the start of December. Authorities are now grappling with how to explain the deaths.
Emergency crews rushed to Sea Island City, New Jersey on Tuesday morning following reports of eight dolphins washed ashore. Two of the dolphins died on the scene, and the remaining six were euthanized hours later
Following the fatal mass-stranding in New Jersey, the Marina Mammal Stranding Center said the six surviving dolphins were euthanized because they were 'rapidly deteriorating'.
'The decision was made to humanely euthanize the dolphins to prevent further suffering, as returning them to the ocean would have only prolonged their inevitable death,' the body added.
'We share in the public's sorrow for these beautiful animals, and hope that the necropsies will help us understand the reason for their stranding.'
In January, a huge 35-foot humpback whale stole headlines after it washed ashore in Long Island, which at the time was the tenth such incident on New York and New Jersey beaches in two months.
Recent years have seen a disturbing spike in beachings, leading the federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to declare an 'unusual mortality event' in 2017.
Since then, at least 335 humpbacks, right whales and minkes, a small species of whale, have died after washing onto the East Coast.
Throughout 2022, 19 humpback whales were stranded on the US Atlantic Coast, according to the NOAA.
But by the end of February, the levels of humpback whales stranded on the East Coast had already reached 50 percent of 2017's tally, with at least 29 whales
