SARASOTA, Fla. — Red tide may be gone, but its impact on our marine life is far from over. We’re now seeing how it’s affecting dolphins in the Sarasota area
Two dolphins have been entangled in fishing line in three weeks.
Hungry dolphins are finding food close to anglers, but that puts them in harm's way.
“The line is through the fin part," said Randy Wells, Mote scientist with Mote and Chicago Zoological Society’s Sarasota Dolphin Research Program. "It’s caught algae and acting as an anchor.”
A young dolphin snagged in fishing line needed help on Monday. Nearly 50 people from Mote and other wildlife agencies came to its rescue in the waters about an hour off Sarasota.
“Within 40 minutes, boats converged, removed the line, treated the animal and let it go,” Wells said.
The cut in the dolphin’s tail had started healing but almost cut all the way through. Wells says. “This animal would have died without intervention.”
It’s the second dolphin entangled in fishing lines scientists have rescued in three weeks.
“We suspect it’s in part to red tide,” said Wells. “What we’ve documented in the last few months is dolphins' prey fish have declined 90% as a result of red tide.”
Wells says underwater microphones show no signs of activity from the marine life dolphins usually eat.
“During healthy times we hear the shrimp snapping, fish and croaking of toadfish and dolphins, but since red tide it’s quiet,” said Wells.
Instead, he said dolphins are going where the fish are closer to anglers … and the danger.
Gretchen Lovewell with Mote’s Stranding Investigations necropsied 29 dolphins that died during the last Red Tide outbreak. There were more than 150 along the state's west coast.
Lovewell said you shouldn’t feed dolphins. Not only is it illegal, but it also doesn’t help them. "You’re actually harming them. It brings them closer to humans puts them in harm’s way.”
Wells said if you spot a dolphin while you’re fishing, take your line out of the water until they leave the area.
“There’s a lot of hoopla in the press how red tide is gone, the effects won’t be gone for years,” he said. “It’s going to take years for the fish population to recover in the bay and get to the numbers they were before.”
Mote scientists say when you are done fishing, stow all your gear before you go and do not throw back fish with hooks still in their mouths. Dolphins will eat the fish along with the hook … and that could kill them.
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