Culprits behind the dismemberment of a bottlenose dolphin yet to be found
The federal law enforcement arm of NOAA Fisheries still hasn’t caught those responsible for the dismemberment of a deceased male bottlenose dolphin, dubbed ABL 007. Officials have been investigating since mid-April and are offering $20,000 for information that leads to identifying the culprits.
After UNCW’s marine mammal stranding network received a call about the dolphin, Dr. Tiffany Keenan, the program coordinator, and assistant stranding coordinator Alison Loftis responded to Lea-Hutaff Island, off the Pender County coast.
“And as we approached, we saw the dolphin was actually missing its head completely, which was really surprising. And then as we got a bit closer, we noticed also that the apaxial muscle, or the back muscle, was missing in a fashion that was similar to how someone would remove the back strap on a cow or on a deer to collect the meat. So that was very concerning, and not something we often see in our area,” Keenan said.
After conducting the necropsy of the dolphin, Keenan said he likely died from drowning in ship netting, based on markings on his body and his hyperinflated lungs.
The scientists surmise that the dolphin died in the netting, and whoever caught it dumped his body offshore in a secluded back creek and came back to harvest it.
Keenan also found evidence of a harmful bacterial disease called brucellosis in his tissues. This disease can be transmitted to humans through the processing and/or the eating of the animal. It’s been known to affect the central nervous system, which then causes various illnesses.
“It's sometimes called ‘goat fever’ or ‘undulating fever’ in humans because it does come and go as a general malaise or sickness that will show up and then disappear, show up and disappear. It can also cause reproductive failure in wild and domesticated species and spontaneous abortion in humans,” she said.
Keenan said she encourages anyone with information on this case to contact the federal law enforcement officers investigating it. The number to call is 1-800-853-1964, or the public can fill out a form here.
A whale's body tampered with on Figure Eight Island
At the same time that the stranding network was getting calls about this dolphin that had been decapitated, other calls were coming in from Figure Eight Island about bones from a much larger animal: a whale from the mysticete family.
Dr. Michael Tift is the director of UNCW’s Marine Mammal Stranding Program. He’s also an assistant professor in the Biology and Marine Biology Department.
“The bones of that animal, rib bones and jaw bones had been cut so cleanly that it was only done by something like a saw, so again, human interaction with marine mammals, we don't know what happened to that animal, and so that's also under investigation as well,” he said.
He added that the stranding network still doesn’t know what happened to the whale; possibly it could have been entangled in a net, or someone out at sea had cut off a piece of its body. NOAA Fisheries' law enforcement arm is investigating this case as well, but there's no reward offered for information about the whale.
Tift said there is no indication that they are related. It's likely coincidental that they happened at the same time.
“The public should know that all marine mammals are federally protected. So, whether they're alive or dead, it is illegal to interact with marine mammal parts, so it's just important that you report it,” he said.
The future of funding for NOAA and stranding programs throughout the country
If passed, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will revoke funds for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration facilities and national marine sanctuaries.
The House Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries has signaled that it’s investigating the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act. Documentation from a February meeting revealed that, according to the committee members, who are all Republican, these Acts have been “exploited by the federal government and radical environmental organizations to stifle development and species recovery.”
Committee members also concluded that “the ESA and MMPA are two examples of environmental statutes whose permitting processes have been weaponized against projects designed to manage our coasts and our fisheries and unleash American resources.”
They discussed the opportunity to “examine how these statutes have worked and how they’ve served as a barrier or hindrance to economic activity.” They also cited the 2024 U.S. Supreme Court case, overturning the Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council precedent. This ruling lessened the power of federal agencies to interpret ambiguous statutes regulating things like the environment. Previously, the precedent — known as the Chevron deference — meant that, unless Congress explicitly weighed in, courts deferred to the way agencies interpreted the law.
Tift said these Acts are “critical for our program to be able to do what we do, which is to respond to sick, injured, or deceased marine mammals. Of course, responding to a large whale on a beach that's deceased is a big job, and so it takes money to do that, and trained people to do that, and so we have to have funding to do that,” he said.
One of the primary funding sources for marine mammal stranding biology work is the NOAA Prescott grant program, which has a budget between $4 and $8 million for stranding research in the United States.
“So part of that gets put out to each program that applies for funding. It's a competitive program, and that's actually on the agenda for being cut, and if it gets cut, it will be a huge hit through a lot of Marine Mammal Stranding teams, and so that's something that we're keeping a close eye on,” he said.
If the ESA and MMPA are gutted, Tift and Keenan won’t necessarily have the means to conduct the scientific work they’re currently asked to do—providing data to the federal government on how best to protect marine mammals.
And if those protections disappear, "these environments could be exploited, and harm from humans will not be watched as closely,” he said.
For example, the deceased dolphin carcass required trained professionals to handle effectively, as some of them are disease carriers that can transfer to humans and their pets.
“If an animal doesn't make it, we try to use every single part of that animal for science. The more we can learn about these animals, the better we can do with rehabilitating them, and the better we can treat them. So these funds help support the health and longevity of these animals,” Keenan said.
If the Prescott funds are eventually phased out, the stranding network would have to look for other private or public funds to complete its work. Tift mentioned looking into state or county monies so it can effectively respond to marine mammals that find themselves on the shores along the North Carolina coast.
“So we're always up for negotiations and talking about future funding opportunities if our federal funding sources go away. But those conversations haven't started,” he said.
Keenan added, “We're all working on razor-thin budgets; I don't think these programs can handle further cuts. We're not a high-paid industry as marine biologists and marine mammologists, but the folks who are involved are incredibly dedicated to the work they do. [...] And it's scary to think how we could run diagnostic samples and things of that nature.”
Prior reporting
- UNCW marine mammal researchers talk about tough stranding cases, ways to educate the public
- Rarely seen whale species died on Emerald Isle after swallowing mylar balloon
- UNCW scientists report marine mammal strandings were down last year
- Manatees continue to linger off NC coast, raising questions about future management plans
- The Newsroom: From global warming warnings to medical breakthroughs, what a UNCW researcher is learning from crabeater seals
- A detailed look inside UNCW’s Marine Mammal Stranding Program
- Odd marine mammals, possibly driven by climate change, are at risk on NC’s coast
- UNCW researchers return from Antarctic winters spent studying climate change and crabeater seals
- UNCW researchers travel to Antarctica to study impacts of climate change and more
