Latest news with #IrishDolphinandWhaleGroup
Irish Independent
04-08-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
Whale calf ‘will likely not survive' after mother washes up on Mayo beach
Members of the public were present when a rare deep-diving Trues' beaked whale washed up on Kilcummin back strand and died. This mother and calf were seen swimming rapidly into shallow waters just before peak high tide before beaching themselves on the shore of the north Mayo beach Unfortunately, the mother whale died within moments of stranding, while the calf managed to swim away. 'This was a very distressing incident for those present, and the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) is extremely grateful to the members of the public who quickly alerted us via the IWDG emergency hotline, and to our trained IWDG Live stranding responders who immediately responded,' said the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group. A postmortem led by Dr Frank O'Sullivan of Dublin Zoo on Monday, July 29, revealed the mother was lactating. This indicates that the calf was maternally dependent and will 'likely not survive' on its own, according to the The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group. True's beaked whales are typically found at depths of over 800 metres and feed off squid and deep-sea fish. The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group said their presence in shallow coastal waters 'often signals a serious underlying issue such as illness, injury, or acoustic trauma'. 'Live strandings of beaked whales are particularly concerning as, unlike coastal dolphins, these animals are not suitable candidates for refloating due to the distance from their natural habitat, and the high likelihood of re-stranding,' said the Irish Dolphin and Whale Group. The Irish Dolphin group said that 'multiple strandings of deep-diving species in different regions in a short time may indicate a shared acoustic event'. Last Thursday, two live Sowerby's beaked whales also live stranded in the Netherlands. One died and the other was euthanized after it had been re-floated several times by members of the public. Elsewhere four Northern bottlenose whales - another deep-diving beaked whale species - stranded last week in Orkney off the north coast of Scotland. 'While we do not know if these events are linked, multiple strandings of deep-diving species in a short time frame are always a cause for concern and close monitoring,' said the Irish Dolphin and Whale Group. If you come across a live stranded whale, dolphin or porpoise, please call the IWDG hotline at 097 28118.
Irish Independent
24-07-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
Pod of dolphins spotted close to Wexford coast
On Wednesday, July 23, a local fisherman, Damien Burke, spotted the mammals along the Arthurstown area of the county, which created great excitement. 'They're just beautiful to see,' he said. "They came right up to the boat. I spotted them first on Wednesday and they were still there this morning (Thursday),' he added. Mr Burke identified the dolphins as the Common Dolphin, which feed on horse mackerel, sauries, herring, lantern fish and squid and are approximately between 1.5 m to 2.7 m in size. These dolphins are the most regularly sighted in Ireland and a spokesperson from the Irish Dolphin and Whale Group, Cian Ó Nialáin warned that 'while they're very interesting creatures, people shouldn't go out after them for their social media'. "We've a code of conduct that we ask people to adhere to, because often times common sense goes out the window when there's pretty dolphins swimming around the river,' he continued. "We ask that anyone on the river reduces their boat speed down to below seven knots, if possible; Limit your encounters with the dolphins to 30 minutes, and take special care when calves are present, never come between a mother and a calf. "Maintaining a steady course parallel to the animals is also important and don't corral them between boats either. Let them approach you,' Mr Ó Nialáin said. In the case where a dolphin is spotted 'swimming frantically around in shallow water' or starts 'getting worryingly close to the shore in the shallow water' without an easy return to the deeper levels, contact should be made with the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group's hotline. This emergency hotline is only for animals stranded alive and can be contacted on (097) 28118.
