Assateague Island National Seashore: Marine Animal Strandings, 1997
Ramsey S. 1997. Assateague Island National Seashore: Marine Animal Strandings, 1997. National Park Service
During 1997, there were 16 dead stranded marine animals on Assateague Island National Seashore, Maryland. And 1 live stranded animal was found but died during transport to National Aquarium in Baltimore rehabilitation facilities. Of the 12 marine mammals, there were 9 Harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), 1 Hooded seal (Cystophora cristata), 1 Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and 1 Atlantic White-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus). There were 5 dead Loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta). All animals were found on the ocean beach, except one Harbor porpoise which was not retrievable in the surf, and one Harbor porpoise skull which was found by a visitor on an Ocean City beach and brought to our staff. Cooperative Oxford Laboratory, through Marine Mammal/Sea Turtle Stranding Network, completed reports on each individual stranding. The 17 total strandings in 1997 is an average number for the Maryland portion of the seashore.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Ramsey, Shanna
- Date of Issue
- 1997
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ASIS
- Keywords
- Animal Studies, Atlantic White-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus), bottle-nosed dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), harbor porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), Hooded seal (Cystophora cristata), Loggerhead Sea Turtle (Caretta caretta), Mortality, Sea Turtles (Cheloniidae & Dermochelyidae), Stranding, Whales & Dolphins (Cetacea)