Dead Dolphin Washed Ashore At Sandy Hook

HIGHLANDS, NJ — A dead dolphin washed up on the beach Monday at Gateway National Recreation Area - Sandy Hook, according to ocean advocacy group Clean Ocean Action, which posted this photo of the dolphin on their Instagram account.

The dolphin was found by a local man at 9:35 a.m. Monday between beaches A and B, near the high tide line.

As of Tuesday morning, it remains unknown what caused the dolphin to die.

The man contacted Clean Ocean Action, which told him to contact the Marine Mammal Stranding Center to retrieve the dolphin, which they did. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center is the non-profit that contracts with the state to retrieve dead or injured marine mammals when they wash ashore in New Jersey.

If a dolphin or seal is injured, the Marine Mammal Stranding Center will nurse it back to health at their headquarters in Brigantine. But the carcasses of dead marine mammals are sent to a state lab to determine a cause of death.

Since 2016, New York/New Jersey has seen an increase in dead whales and dolphins washing ashore, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in this statement. NOAA calls what's happening an "unusual mortality event."

The past year has seen a markedly high number of dead whales/dolphins washing ashore: More than 25 dead whales and dolphins have washed ashore in New Jersey since December 2022. Many of the whales showed evidence of being hit by boats, according to the Marine Mammal Stranding Agency.

However, NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the federal Marine Mammal Commission all say there is no evidence linking sonar used to build offshore wind turbines with the deaths.

Clean Ocean Action said Monday of the dolphin:

"This dolphin's death comes nearly one year to the day (December 5, 2022) that a dead endangered infant sperm whale washed ashore in Keansburg, which many track as the starting point of an unprecedented string of marine mammal deaths in the NY/NJ area."

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