Oct. 13 (UPI) — Marine rescuers in Australia came to the rescue of a dolphin calf spotted swimming with fishing line and other debris dangling from its tail.
The Organization for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans in Australia, or ORRCA, said the approximately 10-month-old calf was spotted by residents of Forster, New South Wales, in late September, and a drone-operated camera was later able to capture footage of the mammal.
“It had fishing line wrapped around its tail, which collected debris … and as the days and weeks went on more debris was getting caught up in it and the dolphin was becoming slower,” Jessica Fox, vice president of ORRCA, told The Australian Broadcasting Corp.
ORRCA teamed with Sea World Foundation rescuers to locate and assist the calf. The team was able to remove the debris from the dolphin’s tail on Saturday.
“The trailing edge of the fishing line floating behind had been caught up in sea grasses and sea algae that was acting [like] a bit of an anchor and weight, which was causing the fishing line to dig deeper into the tail of the little one,” Sea World Foundation head veterinarian Claire Madden said.
“It was a sad sight to see the injuries that a single strand of fishing line had caused to this individual, but it was the best feeling in the world to know we had removed it and given this little one a second chance at life,” she said.
Fox said officials will continue to monitor the calf in the coming weeks and months to ensure it recovers fully.
