
Seven of nine dolphins stranded on a remote New Zealand beach were rescued and refloated on Friday. Volunteers carried buckets of water and wrapped them in towels to keep them hydrated until the tiderose sufficiently to float them back to sea. The Department of Conservation also informed that two of the animals, an adult dolphin and a calf, died following the mass stranding at Whakanewha Bay on Waiheke Island, off the city of Auckland.
Authorities also said that the rescue efforts continued till after 4 pm (New Zealand time) and by 4:40 pm all the remaining dolphins had been successfully refloated.
"This was a huge combined effort from our medics, Department of Conservation staff, Iwi and members of the public,"Project Jonah, a group that specialises in the rescue of stranded whales and dolphins,said in a Facebook post.
New Zealand has the world's highest stranding rate of dolphins and whales, with hundreds of the mammals beached on its shores each year. But the reason behind this phenomenon is still unknown.
(With inputs from agencies)
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