Bottlenose Dolphin stranded in Budva, Montenegro

A single Bottlenose dolphin was found decomposing on Sveti Nikola Island, not far from the coast of mainland Budva.

After receiving a call on the evening of Sunday, 17th February, with reports of the dead stranded dolphin on the island close to Budva, the Montenegro Dolphin Research (MDR) stranding team, led by Lucy Abbiss, a British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) trained marine mammal medic and Researcher for the Marine Mammals Research Association (DMAD), visited the site to retrieve data for scientific purposes.

Despite the individual - identified as a juvenile, demonstrating early signs of decomposition, the team delineated that the dolphin had not undergone any physical injuries causing its death and that the markings seen, were simply signs of decomposition. Although it is not clear what may have caused the death or stranding of the individual without further analysis through autopsy, it is possible that the time of the stranding coinciding with the current seismic activity in Montenegro, could be related. Alternatively, there is the possibility of the death being related to zoonotic viruses, previous storm related activities or other natural causes.

DMAD has successfully operated the first long-term study on dolphins in Montenegro, starting the Montenegro Dolphin Research project in September 2016. As of December 2018, the organisation established the Southern Adriatic Network for Cetacean, Elasmobranch and Turtles stranding events (SANCET). Since then, SANCET, currently in the early stages of development, have already conducted various stranding surveys from Ada Bojana to Jaz. As the network continues to develop, the need for the help of the public and other scientific organisations grows stronger. The help of other organisations participating in the Southern Adriatic Stranding Network (SANCET) is essential in order to further delineate the cause of death, aiding the conservation management plans for Montenegro's marine life.

Researchers at MDR taking measurements of the individual. © Marine Mammals Research Association (DMAD)

For more information on reporting stranding events, please visit https://sancet.wixsite.com/sancet/strandings.