FLORIDA — A California-based nonprofit hopes a $5,000 reward will entice someone to come forward with tips — big or small — to help authorities in Florida track down a recent “dolphin killer.”
Dolphin Project, the group offering the reward, said information can qualify for the reward if it leads to a civil penalty or criminal conviction of the person or persons responsible for sticking a “spear-like object” into a nursing dolphin’s head at a Florida beach a few months ago.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, it received a report of a dead bottlenose dolphin on March 24 at Fort Myers Beach. The agency’s partner, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, ultimately recovered the animal.
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A necropsy revealed the dolphin was pierced in the head with a spear-like object while alive.
The animal appeared to have died from the trauma, which occurred at or near the time of death, NOAA officials said.
Since 2002, at least 27 dolphins have been shot with guns or arrows, or impaled by sharp objects. Harming or killing wild dolphins can be punishable by a fine of up to $100,000 and up to a year in jail, Dolphin Project reported.
To report information about this dolphin’s killing, call the NOAA Enforcement Hotline at 800-853-1964. Tips may be left anonymously.