Dolphin suffered from respiratory infection
Rescue team euthanized mammal
BY PETER A. SUTTERS JR. INDEPENDENT WRITER
Acommon dolphin that was euthanized on the grassy shore of Madaket Harbor last Tuesday was most likely suffering from a respiratory infection and was going to succumb to the illness on his own, according to a member of the Cape Cod Stranding Network.

Sarah Herzig, who performed a necropsy on the juvenile dolphin, said definitive lab tests will not be complete for a couple of weeks.

The saga began a week ago Monday when two dolphins were spotted in Hither Creek near Millie's Bridge. Team members from the Nantucket Marine Mammal Stranding TTeam began to monitor the two dolphins whose normal feeding grounds are miles off shore.

By Tuesday, word spread of the rare dolphin sighting and onlookers gathered on the bridge to view the pair, who had moved under the bridge to the inlet on the south side of the bridge.

One of the two dolphins spent most of its time just feet from the bank, moving only slightly, while the other struggled to swim in the shallow waters. Observers with sharp ears could hear the two communicating through a series of clicks and whistles.

When the team from the Cape Cod Stranding Network arrived last Tuesday afternoon, the decision was made to take the sick dolphin out of the water and check its health.

Herzig and her fellow team member C.T. Harry loaded the dolphin onto a specially made stretcher and hauled him out of the water for an examination.

During the exam, the second dolphin began to make its way under the bridge back into Hither Creek. He was spotted farther north in Hither Creek that afternoon and was later herded by boat back into Madaket Harbor. His current whereabouts are not known, but Herzig said from observing him swim, he appeared to

be healthy. I