An unprecedentedly bad year for beached dolphins on Cape Cod might have to do with warming waters changing the availability of the animals' food, said scientists hoping to curb the strandings. Cape Cod, the Massachusetts peninsula beloved by beach tourists and seafood lovers, has a long history of marine mammal strandings. That is partially because of dramatic changes in the tide that sometimes trap wayward dolphins if they swim too close to shore.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare, which responds to marine mammal strandings, said Thursday it has responded to 342 live, stranded dolphins this year, and that is five times more than its annual average of 67. An already bad year got worse earlier this month when the organization was inundated with calls about beached dolphins. More than 50 of the animals were stranded on multiple beaches and waterways in the span of a week, the organization said.
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