A sick dolphin stranded on a Texas coast has died after being harassed by swimmers – and the federal government is now offering a $20,000 reward to catch those responsible, authorities have announced.
The female bottlenose dolphin washed up on Quintana Beach near Freeport, Texas on April 10 and drowned after swimmers pushed the animal out to sea, attempted to swim with it and even climbed on it, local news outlet KHOU reported.
“In this case, it’s a pretty glaring example of what not to do,” Texas A&M University Galveston marine biologist Dr. Christopher Marshall told KHOU.
“People riding the animal, the animal was quite sick, already stressed at this point,” she said. “The animal was probably on the brink and it was the stress that killed it.”
It’s common for dolphins to wash up on Texas beaches, but people aren’t supposed to touch federally protected mammals, the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network said in a Facebook post.
“She eventually washed ashore (for the second time) and was harassed by a crowd of people on the beach where she later died before rescuers could arrive on the scene,” the group said in a post on Facebook.
“This type of harassment causes undue stress to wild dolphins, is dangerous to people who interact with them and is illegal – subject to fines and jail time if convicted.”
Instead, people are supposed to report stranded dolphins to authorities (1-800-962-6625 in Texas).
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration law enforcement investigators are asking anyone with information about who harassed the dolphin to come forward. They will be eligible for reward money if there is successful identification, prosecution and arrest or conviction.
The NOAA Office of Law Enforcement hotline is (800) 853-1964.
New York Post