Sightings and Strandings

Two individuals seen breaching a few hundred metres from the shore at Bombay Harbor, Cuffe Parade. Photograph attached.

Washed ashore at Miramar Beach. Appeared to be a juvenile/sub-adult

Washed ashore at Keri Beach. Necropsy conducted

Washed ashore at Jogeshwar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1yCzGt9G1Q

Washed ashore at Polem beach. Right flipper appears to have a deep cut, possibly from fishing line.

No measurements were taken. From the photographs, the size of the body and fin shape, could be a sub-adult individual.

Carcass washed ashore at Kumta beach.

Washed ashore at Calangute beach. No other data submitted.

Carcass found on Cavellosim beach, Goa.

Washed ashore at Rajbagh beach.

Madhu from WII Dugong team reported this melon headed washed ashore. Necropsy was carried out and sample collection was also done. Teeth count is also available.

Washed ashore at Sinquerim beach. Morpho collected.

Found at 5 am by SSTCN turtle walkers at the water's edge on Besant Nagar Elliot's beach.
Measurements made by SSTCN volunteers: total length, 236 cm; height of dorsal fin, 25 cm; circumference, 142 cm; tail fluke, 58 cm.
Length of flipper, 58 cm.
Location of fin, 112 cm from tip of snout; 90 cm to tail fluke. Base of fin, 30 cm.
Teeth -- upper jaw, 2 teeth + 2-plus sockets; lower jaw, 15? teeth.
No rigor mortis when found, eyes fresh.
Female?
No signs of injury. Some protrusion [intestine?] in the anal region.
Skin white overall except for a dark patch on left flank. Tailstock pockmarked heavily with shallow circular depressions.
Ribs visible on sides. Flesh constricted? in the neck region.
Curious odour noted when approached first.

Dead individual floating in the sea

Pod of Orca's visited Goa on 21-01-19. In 25-30m of water off the coast of Canacona. Approximately 4-5 individuals. One young individual.

Dolphin washed ashore at Mobor beach. Data collected by lifeguards

The dolphin was found washed ashore in Walkeshwar by BMC workers and was taken away.

a baleen whale was recorded offshore of Mumbai and a video was collected by fishermen. International experts could not ID the species either.

3-4 humpback dolphins were stranded in shallow waters off Bhavnagar, at Kathiyya jal. People tried to pull them to deeper waters. Eventually they swam back out at high tide.

Stranding

This was a pod of 100+ dolphins moving fast in a single direction possibly Northwards. Assuming there were more individuals below the surface it could be anywhere near 200. Juveniles were also present meaning this could be a single pod or multiple pods gathered together and the linear movement in a single direction suggests a possibility of predators being present in the area. No fishing activity was noticed. Swinhoe''s storm petrel as well as flesh-footed shearwater were also spotted along with them.

Washed ashore at Ashwem, Goa - Source: TerraConscious and Drishti Lifeguards.
Seems to be a juvenile. There are rake marks seen from base of dorsal fin till the blowhole. the jaw is broken and missing.

a young humpback dolphin washed ashore at Marakkanam. No serious external injury seen. No necropsy. No sample collection.

washed ashore in Dhantej village of Sutrapda, Gujarat.

Carcass washed ashore on 2nd September 2018. Reported on 3rd September 2018. No morphometric data recorded.

Carcass buried on site. No morphological data collected.

Humpback dolphin and finless porpoise carcass washed ashore. Probably, necropsy was conducted by the SPCA, but no details were shared.
The carcass appears small in size, probably a calf/juvenile. The attached pictures have two carcasses, the smaller one is the humpback dolphin carcass.

Animal washed ashore not far from Juhu police Chowki. Morphological data not recorded. Animal buried on site by the locals.

Humpback dolphin was stranded at Chimbai beach, no morphological data collected.

Information was forwarded by Dr. Dinesh Vinherkar, based on a whatsapp forward he received. No morphometric details received.

Pictures attached. No data available.

Finless porpoise female, total length: 1.34m. Stranded near ONGC bridge.
FD carried out a necropsy and found undigested bombay duck in the stomach contents.
An injury was present above the eye.

Washed ashore Mandrem beach. Source: Terraconscious and Drishti Lifeguards

whale washed ashore in Okha.. Sample taken and deposited in Wildlife Institute of India

Carcass was found by Mr. Zsu Ferrao, between Rangaon and Bhuigaon beach. Another dead dolphin was observed about 500 m away from this carcass.

Around 20 individuals including a mother-calf pair were observed during line transect surveys.

Washed ashore at Betim. Source Terraconscious and Drishti life guards. Submitted data to Forest dept.

Carcass washed ashore at Versova beach. Reported by Afroze Shah. The carcass was buried after being checked by forest officials as reported by Afroze Shah.

Juvenile spinner dolphin male. No other details available.

Female dugong washed ashore in Palk Bay, Ammapattinam, Pudukottai District. Total length was 9.7ft

Carcass was first observed on the evening of 22nd April 2018 by fishermen. Stranding reported on the 23rd of April 2018. Carcass condition: Code 4. Total length: 2.41 m. Skin and tooth samples collected. Sex could not be determined. Species confirmation: tooth count and morphological characters.Dorsal fin was bent under the body.

Without head Dugong, Calf Washed Ashore in Ammapattinam, Pudukkottai district on 29th March 2018.
Weight ~ 60Kg

Morphometric measurements available with the Forest Dept. Found at Cavelosim beach.

N. phocaenoides was probably brought ashore in a gill net craft at about 1600 hrs on 5th April 2018. Total length: 165.1 cm. Sex: Male. External examination: Code 2; Eyes appeared bloodshot, wound around the body just behind the head from being entangled in the net; 3 to 4 surface wounds resembling rake marks on the right lateral side of the body behind the flipper. At the point where the right flipper joined the body, a slight superficial notch like wound was observed no bleeding. Internal examination: Haemolysis in the muscle had just begun; Presence of foam in the lungs; Partially digested fish remains found in the stomach; no other signs of injury to internal organs.

A group of Dugongs sighted in Arthur channel, off Sir Hugh rose island.

Carcass was fresh. Its skin has peeled off in places. Carcass is of a juvenile animal less than a year old as foetal curves are still visible.

Adult dugong spotted 500m off Bharatpur beach, Neil Island.

Found in a decomposed state during turtle walks at Ururkuppam by Raghuraman R
Several injuries and/or bite marks on the body. COD unknown. Sample collected by SSTCN.

Carcass floating in code 3. sample collected and in wii.

An individual was observed breaching twice with its belly facing the observer platform. Seemed like it was trying to stun a school of fish. There were also seen two ring seines in the vicinity of the animal.

single individual either a young male or a female, found in association with a fishing vessel - fishermen took a video

A pod of about 100 Fraser's dolphins were observed in a mixed species group with Short-finned Pilot whales in South Andaman. The observations were made during ferry based surveys.

Carcass was burnt and discoloured, severely decomposed and with a rupture around the anus. Its internal organs were visible. Its tongue was swollen which could be a sign of asphyxiation.

Code 4. Decomposed carcass, necropsy could not be conducted. The carcass was buried before morphometrics could be recorded.

Carcass was severely burnt, discoloured, bloated and ruptured around the anus. It was about 1.5 meters in length.

Saw around 8-10 Dolphins coming arial

A pod of about 70 Risso's dolphins were observed during ferry based surveys in South Andaman waters.

Carcass was severely decomposed and bloated. Its skin was sunburnt and discoloured. Fluke was completely decomposed. Jaw bone was visible. Approximately 6 feet in size.

Four to five individuals swimming towards Twins Island.

FD buried the carcass. No details collected.

The animal was stranded on Saturday 21st October 2017 but was reported on 23rd October 2017. The individual was stranded in two parts. Posterior portion washed ashore near the Afghan church shore and the anterior head region was found near the Colaba pumping station. The tail region was inaccessible approx. length estimate was 5 m. The head region was measured at 7.8 m. The total ventral pleat count was 43-44. Bryde's whales match this pleat count.
The carcass was in advanced stages of decomposition and the jaw bones and certain vertebrae were exposed.

Individual was a young female 27ft8m stranded live. It was first seen circling in the shallows after midnight on the 21st. Beached by 6am. When locals found out it was alive then decided to take it back to sea. We found out a bit late as rescue operations had begun even though we tried to convince locals that it would not survive.It beached again on 23rd at a beach a km west of the first location.

The carcass was found washed ashore early morning by joggers/walkers along Rajodi beach. Morphometry was not recorded. The animal was later buried by local authorities.

Indian Ocean Hump back Dolphin carcass was found in the mangroves of Bandra

Carcass washed ashore at Juhu beach.

Unidentified Marine Mammal Carcass Found Dead at Aksa Beach

This whale was found on Polem beach. Two parts of the whale were found about 50m apart, measuring about 7m and 6.5m.
It had beached about 2 weeks prior to the time we found out about it. The date of the record is therefore adjusted accordingly.
Based on the flipper, it is certainly not a Humpback whale, but could be any of the other whales. The carcass condition does not allow us to ID.

Carcass found ashore in a decomposed state, along with oil slick and garbage. Morphometric data could not be collected

Bryde's whale stranded 10.5m length near to fish market area , Veraval, Gir-somnath. Pictures attached. Three ridges seen on upper rostrum.

Almost fully decomposed except the head. Forest department buried it with out doing post mortem.

Female individual live stranded on Rajodi beach at 1330 on 13th July 2017. Locals tried to push it back into the water unsuccessfully. The individual died within two hours of the rescue attempt and was buried in the same location.
Approximate length of the animal was about 228 cm. Bleeding was observed from the genital opening/anus.

Located well offshore along with skip-jack tuna. Approx 30 to 40 in the pod.Actively hunting.

Over 100 dolphin in the area. All spread out over vast area. Seemed to be resting in the area and not hunting or feeding. Were attracted by the boat and in a playful mood. Located well offshore in 200+ meters of water. May have been a mix of species. Seen in May 2015

Seen in May 2015

Group of 4 to 5 seen, maybe more. Moving South at about 8 knots. they were shy and did not stop or change course. Difficult to predict where they would surface. Seen just outside Port Blair port. Possible Omura's whale as size was around 40 ft. Seen on 05.05.2015

Decomposed. Found its long tusk

Decaying, internal organs came out from mouth

badly bloated decomposing carcass with a rope tied to the fluke.

1. Total body length = 250cm
2. Snout to centre of anal opening = 169 cm
3. Snout to centre of genital opening = 132 cm
4. Snout to centre of umbilicus = 106 cm
5. Head plus neck length = 20 cm
6. Head length = not measured
7. Neck length = 15 cm
8. Penis length = 15 cm
9. Anal opening length = 4 cm
10. Distance of teat from the body centre line = 24 cm
11. Snout length = 17 cm
12. Snout width = 20 cm
13. Chin length = 12 cm
14. Chin width = 17 cm
15. Distance separating centres of tusks at tips --- not measured
16. Tusks length ----not found
17. Snout nostrils = 13 cm
18. Snout to eyes. = 20 cm
19. Snout to external auditory meatus = 35 cm
20. Eye to nostril = 17 cm
21. Eye to external auditory meatus = 12.5 cm
22. Eye to gape ---- not measured
23. Gape length --- not measured
24. Eye height = 1 cm
25. Eye length = 2 cm
26. Nostril height = 3 cm
27. Nostril width = 2 cm
28. Total nostril width = 6

Humpback whale heard by Dive Goa's Ajey Patil and Barracuda Dive Centre's Khush Khabraja and Venkatesh Charloo. Ajey got a voice recording on a video recorder while Khush saw the fluke. the whale was heard for two days near Suzie's wreck, off Grande island, Goa

Two striped dolphins by caught. Pictures attached. One of two is male. Approx 1m in total length

pod of 4 at the 50m depth contour straight out from Panjim 4 days ago

On 14th January i have sighted a large pod of Indo-pacific humpback dolphins at Aare ware coast which is located 15 km from Ratnagiri city. The pod consisted of around 20 individuals separated into four groups. The animals were swimming near to shore and were found to tolerate presence of fishing trawlers. The animals were probably hunting as tail waving and other tactics like jumping was observed. The animals showed off nearly for an hour.

Two orca sightings reported:
pod of 4 at the 50m depth contour straight out from Panjim 4 days ago.
Single orca, 2 months ago, again around 50m depth contour, near Mangalore.

Reported by crew member of a fishing vessel trained by Ajey at DiveGoa

Stranded ashore at Tambeldegh

Total length ~ 35 feet

Stranded ashore

On 17th September 2016 a female Indian Ocean Hump Back dolphin was Washed on the Rocks of Palm Beach, Bombay

Calf

It has been said that this whale washed ashore live and was dragged back into the water as a rescue operation the next day. It was young, and very emaciated as you can see in the pictures.

Whale was he ashore dead. 35ft in length.

On 6th August 2016 on a pelagic birdwatching trip on a fishing trawler a huge pod of dolphins were sighted off the Chennai coast. Videos and photographs confirmed a super-pod of Stenella atttenuata also known as Pan-tropical Spotted Dolphin. Three to five dolphins were breaching at a time every 5-10 minutes, and the estimate was about 10-15 pods of 100 dolphins/pod. As the boat stayed with the dolphins for about 90 minutes the size of the full group could be in hundreds if not a thousand. The dolphins were moving constantly showing acrobatic and social behaviour. They seemed to be moving while locally milling. There were calves and adults, singles, pairs and big groups. The sighting was between 12.40 p.m. 13.17592329, 80.51683536 until about 02.15 p.m 13.12593895, 80.509396. The temperature was around 36 C at about 12 noon, wind speed 18 km/h in West/South-West direction at 12 noon, the depths of the sea in the range of 90-95 meters.

Male baleen whale washed ashore on July 12th 2016. No other data was collected. No sample collected.

Hare island, Tuticorin. Whale washed ashore live on Hare island. It was reflected by locals. But washed back dead the next day. Data collected by Fisheries college, Tuticorin. Samples with Veterinary college, Tuticorin.

Washed ashore, calf

Unidentified baleen whale. Either Blue or Bryde's.

On 21st of April 2016 a carcass of a very young Indian Ocean hump back dolphin was beached on Prixi Beach. Details were taken and then it was burred there by Forest officials

1. Total body length = 140 cm
2. Snout to centre of anal opening = 90 cm
3. Snout to centre of genital opening = 84 cm
4. Snout to centre of umbilicus = 83 cm
5. Head plus neck length = 22 cm
6. Head length = 17 cm
7. Neck length = 8 cm
8. Genital opening length= 2 cm
9. Anal opening length = 2 cm
10. Distance of teat from the body centre line = 13 cm
11. snout length = 6.5 cm
12. snout width = 14.2 cm
13. Chin length = 7.6 cm
14. Chin width = 8.7 cm
15. Distance separating centres of tusks at tips --- not measured
16. Tusks length ----not found
17. Snout nostrils ---- 6.4 cm
18. Snout to eyes.= 13.4 cm
19. Snout to external auditory meatus = 22.7 cm
20. Eye to nostril = 11.5 cm
21 Eye to external auditory meatus = 9.3 cm
22. Eye to gape ---- not measured
23. Gape length--- not measured
24. Eye height = 0.9 cm
25. Eye lenght = 0.8 cm
26. Nostril height = 1.4cm
27. Nostril width = 1.2 cm
28. Total nostril width = 3.3 cm
29. Circumference measurement taken along the auditory meatus = 66 cm?
30. Anterior

A pod of 6 dolphins sighted around 1:30 pm. Dolphins were around 0.5 km off-shore and were actively swimming

No teeth count available. Need skull to confirm ID.

We discovered a pod of around 5 dolphins they obliged us with frequent sights above water maneuvering into the deeper jungle channel of Indian Sundarbans.

On 29th February 2016 a dolphin carcass was found beached ashore of Palm Beach Manori. Teeth count suggests this is a Tursiops.

TL-33.8 ft; female- Rushikulya beach

A pair incidentally trapped in an active purse seine at night, subsequently released by the crew

Two individuals sighted off Mochemad coast, depth approx 12.9m. Animals were seen traveling offshore.

Mother-calf pair spotted at Devbag, depth 17.1m, approximately 4.5km from shore.

I went to Devbaug beach near Tarkarli for 7 days. I used to watch group of 10- 12 dolphins every day on the beach. This pic is clicked at Devbaug.

A total of 100 - 150 animals were seen observers' estimates vary. At least 4 subgroups of roughly 25 animals each were present. Distinctive fin deformities and markings were noticed in some individuals.

Carcass washed ashore on Bhogwe beach.

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total length 16feet

A blue whale calf total length: 12.8m stranded live at Revdanda beach in shallow water. Animal was extremely emaciated. Samples were collected.

Washed ashore, most likely Bryde's or blue.

On 10th may 2015 found washed ashore at Palm Beach Manori .

Four individuals one appeared to be a calf, approximate distance from shore was 1.5km and water depth 17.3m

Three individuals a sub-adult and 2 adults were sighted swimming towards deeper waters offshore. Initial water depth of sighting was 17.5m, approximately 5.4km from shore

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Mother-calf pair spotted off Kunkeshwar, approximately 2.7 km from shore, water depth was 16m.

Humpback dolphins travel along the coast between Naliya and Mandi harbor

Carcass washed ashore

a small group of 2-3 humpback dolphins were sighted.

Badly decomposed carcass washed in with the tide in the Devbagh creek.

A dead adult female Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin Sousa chinensis washed ashore on 16th October, 2014 morning at Mithapur coast 22° 25.137' N; 68° 59. 482' E