Photos of (dead) marine mammals and sea turtles wanted! (Photo by DolphinCare UK)
Our sister program, COASST, is working on a field guide to stranded marine mammals and sea turtles. While COASST is focused on the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, many of the species they see out there also turn up on our eastern beaches. Since many of you Seanetters also moonlight with marine mammal and sea turtle stranding programs, we thought you all might be able to contribute photos to this worthy effort.
The list provided below includes the bicoastal species you may encounter out there.
Our friends at COASST will accept hard copies of photos, or digital photos, of course. Feel free to send photos you may already have, and keep the project in mind should you come across any of these unfortunate animals in the future. You can send the photos to us here at SEANET and we will serve as a liaison to COASST for you.
Keep in mind the same guidelines for getting high quality photos you use for dead seabirds; shoot from directly above the carcass and include the whole body in the shot. As always, keep safety in mind, and do not approach an animal if it is still alive, as stranded animals may feel vulnerable and could therefore become dangerous.
MAMMALS Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) Minke Whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) Bryde’s Whale (Balaenoptera edeni) Sei Whale (Balaenoptera borealis) Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus) Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) Pygmy Sperm Whale (Kogia breviceps) Dwarf Sperm Whale (Kogia sima) Cuvier’s Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris) Blainville’s Beaked Whale (Mesoplodon densirostris) (Possibly) Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) Rough-toothed Dolphin (Steno bredanensis) Common Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) Pantropical Spotted Dolphin (Stenella attenuata) Striped Dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) Short-beaked Common Dolphin (Delphinus delphis) Risso’s Dolphin (Grampus griseus) False Killer Whale (Pseudorca crassidens) Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) Short-finned Pilot Whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) Harbor Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) SEA TURTLES Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) Loggerhead Turtle (Caretta caretta) Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) Kemp’s Ridley (Lepidochelys kempi) Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)
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