Two marine mammals recently washed-up dead on Long Island beaches.
On Sunday, January 29, New York State Environmental Conservation Officers (ECOs) Della Rocco, Vandenbos, and Zullo responded to a complaint of a deceased dolphin that had washed up on Egypt Beach in Easthampton, Suffolk County.
When the Officers arrived, they found the seven-foot common dolphin and transported it to the Ridge Conservation Area to have a necropsy conducted to determine the cause of death in cooperation with partners at the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society (AMSEAS).
The next day, Monday, January 30th, ECO Lieutenant Reilly, along with ECOs Dickson and Smith, responded to reports of a humpback whale found deceased at Lido Beach Town Park, in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County.
The Officers spent the day securing the scene with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of Law Enforcement, Nassau County Police, Town of Hempstead Bay Constables, and Town of Hempstead Public Safety.
The ECOs also performed public outreach throughout the day and coordinated plans for a necropsy and burial with AMSEAS.
A necropsy was conducted the next day before the whale was buried. The 40-year-old male humpback was 41 feet long and weighed 14.5 tons. NOAA officials determined it was likely killed by a vessel strike.
Photos, from above provided by NYS Department of Environmental Conservation: ECO Smith and NOAA federal agent assess the humpback whale washed ashore at Lido Beach; and ECOs Vandenbos and Zullo with the dead common dolphin washed ashore at Egypt Beach.
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