Dolphins rescued from fishing line in Collier County

A baby dolphin and its mother were rescued after days of being tangled in a fishing line off the Isles of Capri.

Florida Fish and Wildlife and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were called, and that’s when the life-threatening rescue happened.

It was a huge team effort starting when someone saw the baby dolphin caught in some fishing line with seaweed attached to it. The right people arrived and rescued the animal and released it back into the water.

While they weren’t involved in the rescue, video from the Marco Patriots’ disaster response shows FWC, NOAA, University of Florida, and more jumped in to help.

NOAA determined the incident was life-threatening, and a rescue ensued in the Isles of Capri around noon on Tuesday.

Thanks to the team and their expertise, the line was cut, and the dolphin was freed.

WINK News spoke with Denise Boyd, a marine mammal research associate with FWC, about what happened.

“The animal was deemed to have an entanglement that could cause it severe damage over time. So, the vets came in with us as a team, we located the animal early this morning, we caught it with its mom in a net set, we took the line off, the vet administered some long-lasting antibiotics, and the animal was released back into the wild,” Boyd said.

If you see an animal that’s entangled or in danger, FWC encourages you to take a picture, report it, and not to try and handle the situation yourself.