Marine animal workers have staged a rescue operation after a pair of dolphins became stranded on a beach in the north east of Scotland.
Specialists from charity British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) arrived at Fraserburgh beach earlier after a member of the public spotted the mammals early on Monday morning. The two dolphins could be seen facing each other as they lay beached in the sand.
Local drone firm Aberdeenshire Drone Services shared dramatic images of the ongoing rescue effort on its social media page after the charity called for aerial reconnaissance support. The dolphins can be seen being draped in wet blankets in order to protect them from drying out.
Stacey Esson, Aberdeenshire co-ordinator for the BDMLR, said the intention was to refloat the animals at high tide at around 1pm. A vet is understood to have arrived on scene and is said to be happy with the condition of the animals.
Stacey said: "The animals are being looked after by medics and there will be a vet on route. There is also a vet on the end of the phone that works for the charity looking at videos and pictures. We are keeping the animals wet. They can be out of water as long as they are upright and kept wet.
"The high tide is 1pm and we will hopefully have them back in water if they are in good condition and it has been signed off by the vet. It will take a while to get all this organised but it is in hand."
The Record understands that the dolphins were fed back into the water using a pontoon and tarpaulin so they could naturally readjust to being in the water before swimming off. The mammals were eventually floated about an hour sooner than planned.
Stacey later added: "The animals were successfully refloated. We'll keep an eye on local beaches for the next few days to see if they restrand."
Dolphin and whale beachings occur around the UK hundreds of times each year. The reasons vary, but animals often beach themselves when ill, or if their echolocation – the means by which many marine mammals navigate – becomes confused by seismic activity or noise pollution.
The BDLMR Aberdeenshire JustGiving page, which supports volunteers with rescue equipment costs, can be found here.
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