Dead dolphin washes ashore at Pensacola

GULF BREEZE, Fla. (WALA) - The dolphin seems to be the mascot of the Gulf Coast. The animals are always seen from across the coast. However, a dolphin washed ashore Monday morning at Pensacola Bay. Now an animal refuge shelter is trying to figure out what caused it to die.

Residents at Bay Bridge Condos in Gulf Breeze sees dolphins swimming daily. However, they saw a dolphin far closer than they hoped to on Monday morning.

"It's very sad looking at it. Being our mascot for Gulf Breeze High School, it's kind of sad having one washing up here at the condos," said Laurie Ford.

The Emerald Coast Animal Refuge was called out to take care of its remains, and possibly find out how it died.

"When we come out for dead marine animals, we do a necropsy, which is an autopsy on animals. We take samples for histology, red tide blooms, and genetics," said Amanda Wilkerson, a volunteer with the Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge.

One of the main reasons they tested the dolphin was to see if something in the water possibly caused its death. If so, that could pose a risk to humans as well.

"They get respiratory diseases just like we do, so it's going to tell us if there is something in our water that can harm humans as well. It will help us continue to learn more about marine mammals, life expectancy, what they're eating, how they're interacting with humans and fisheries," added Wilkerson.

This is the eighth dolphin in 2010 officials know has died along the Gulf Coast. They're finding about one a week on the shore, and looking into why the numbers are up.

"We’re going to do more stomach sampling, take more urine and feces samples, so that we can send it off to check for red tide blooms," Wilkerson said.

Officials hope to bury the dolphin at her final resting place, but if they can't find a dry beach, they'll return her to the bay.

It usually takes several weeks for the necropsy results to come back.