Happy ending to dolphin tale

A FEMALE bottle-nosed dolphin became stranded in Co Kerry last year and was returned to the sea.

According to the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), this was the first successful rescue of a dolphin in Ireland and there’s an unexpected bonus; the patient was pregnant during her ordeal and has since given birth.

For reasons unknown, dolphins and whales become stranded on beaches. Victims can’t survive for long out of water. Lying on a beach, a cetacean’s internal organs may be crushed under its enormous weight, causing internal injuries. Without the sea’s cooling water around it, the body rapidly overheats and dehydration sets in.