innovations in marine rescue and rehabilitation

Along a stretch of Route 6A in Orleans, Massachusetts you can find typical sights outside your window as you drive past: gas stations, a few banks and restaurants, a toy shop. Soon, nestled among the unassuming buildings, there may be dolphins.

IFAW’s marine rescue team is internationally recognized for its rescue and research expertise. For 23 years, our research and innovations have led to groundbreaking response techniques and increased survival rates for marine mammals in stranding hotspots around the world. It was previously believed that stranded dolphins and porpoises would have an extremely low chance of survival if released following a stranding event. IFAW challenged this thinking and was determined to find a better solution. Thanks to field health assessments, treatments and tracking released cetaceans with satellite tags, our team now has a 62% release rate of stranded dolphins, up from 14% before the program began and they have proven that stranded cetaceans can be successfully rescued and released.

Now, we are looking to further improve survival with the opening of a new, innovative Cetacean Intensive Care Unit (CICU) which will treat stranded cetaceans affected by stranding-associated conditions (shock, trauma and capture myopathy). Located in a former retail space, the CICU contains two large pools and accompanying filtration systems to accommodate stranded mammals for 1-4 days until they are deemed stable enough for release.

Each pool is 14-16 feet in diameter and holds 4,000 gallons of water. The facility will be staffed 24 hours a day by IFAW-trained veterinarians, biologists and volunteer responders. While the rehabilitation area cannot be open to the public, for the safety of the dolphins, the front area of the facility will be outfitted with an education display and closed-circuit television, allowing curious onlookers the chance to view activity inside and learn about these rehabilitation efforts.

Cape Cod sees the most frequent dolphin strandings of any place in the world. With the CICU in operation, we believe we can improve the survival of stranded dolphins. Before the opening of the CICU, IFAW experts and rescuers had to treat stranded animals solely in the field or in IFAW’s custom-built dolphin rescue vehicle. By giving these stranded animals a dedicated space with additional diagnostics and treatments—such as ultrasounds, radiographs and EKGs—we are giving them a stronger chance of survival.

Through the CICU, IFAW will work to develop protocols explaining handling, treatment and bio-security procedures and how animals should be cared for during treatment. Our goal is for these protocols to form the basis of training for international responders in cetacean response through IFAW’s Center of Excellence.

This year IFAW was named to Fast Company’s annual list of the world’s most innovative nonprofits for the work of our marine rescue program and the revolutionary way we are evaluating and treating stranded marine mammals.