Dead Dolphin Washes Up In Keyport This Week

KEYPORT, NJ — A dead dolphin washed ashore in Keyport Wednesday morning, making that three dead dolphins found on the Jersey Shore this week. The two others were in Mantoloking and Sea Isle City.

The dolphin washed ashore in Keyport, confirmed Sheila Dean, executive director of the Marine Mammal Stranding Center, the group that is assigned by the state to retrieve dead or injured marine mammals when they wash ashore in New Jersey.

A dead dolphin also washed ashore in Mantoloking, also on Wednesday. Prior to this, a dolphin washed ashore Monday at Sea Isle City. The Sea Isle City dolphin was still alive and beachgoers tried to push it back into the water when it first became stranded, but it came ashore again three hours later. Authorities then euthanized the dolphin due to it being lethargic and underweight.

Both the dolphins in Keyport and Mantoloking were very badly decomposed, said Dean.

They were not sent to the NJ state lab because they were so badly decomposed but instead Marine Mammal Stranding Center staff will do their own necropsies on the dolphins to determine cause of death.

She said it was too early to say what caused all three dolphins to die.

Dolphin Euthanized After Washing Up On Jersey Shore (Sept. 28)