Monroe County

Dolphins Found Stranded Near Rabbit Key

Five dolphins were recovered Saturday after being stranded near Everglades National Park.

Dolphins Plus Marine Mammal Responder received a call at 8 a.m. from Everglades Park Rangers about dolphins beached 20 miles north of Islamorada on the flats near Rabbit Key. A fifth was found a short distance off Lower Matecumbe Key.

The dolphin rescue team said three of the dolphins were so dehydrated and had such elevated heart rates that federal wildlife officials determined they had to be euthanized.

The recovered dolphins were taken to Dolphins Plus in Key Largo. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution scientists evaluated the two other dolphins and transported them to SeaWorld in Orlando for further treatment.

Officials think they may have been pushed into shallow waters by Hurricane Hermine.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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