Bottlenose Dolphin on the shore of Southmoor
Yesterday I heard that a Bottlenose Dolphin had unfortunately beached on the foreshore of Southmoor at the north end of Langstone harbour. The male Dolphin, measuring 2.7m in length, was first found on Wednesday and has later been removed by the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme to carry out an autopsy to try to understand the death of this impressive creature.
Bottlenose dolphins can be up to 3.9 meters in length and up to 650kg in weight. They are infrequently seen around the Solent which makes this sighting particularly unusual.
Even if this incident has nothing to do with mans intervention with the sea it has made me particularly mindful for further protection in our seas. Marine Conservation Zones are one step closer to helping protect wonderful animals like the Bottlenose Dolphin. Unfortunately of the 127 zones proposed only 27 were designated – none of which were in Hampshire. For more information on MCZ’s please check out – http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/mcz
Many thanks to Paul, our Southmoor cattle looker, for passing on the details and taking these photos.
Solent Reserves Blog 