A baby dolphin is said to have died after a Florida man pulled it out of the sea for an Instagram photo.
The 19-year-old suspect has not yet been charged and claims the one-year-old male calf was already dead when he found it under a bridge near Nassau Sound.
But the teenager, who has not been named, has previously shared messages defending him from picking him up – calling his death an ‘accident’ and a ‘once in a lifetime’ photo.
Marine biologists have since confirmed that the calf found dead on Wednesday was the same one sported by the young angler in the circulating snap.
Both posts have since been deleted, but not before sparking widespread anger and even a federal investigation. Led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the investigation on Thursday has yet to result in a charge.
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The 19-year-old suspect has not yet been charged – and claims the one-year-old male calf was already dead when he found it under a bridge near Nassau Sound.
Marine biologists have since confirmed that the calf found dead on Wednesday was the same one sported by the young angler in the circulating snap.
However, several marine biologists have confirmed News4Jax – the first to report the controversy – that the young dolphin shown in the sailor’s photo is the same one discovered dead a few days later.
The poof, Dr. Quincy Gibson of the University of North Florida’s Dolphin Research Program said Tuesday, is in the creature’s dorsal fins.
“The shape matches the photo where the dolphin is being held,” Gibson told the North Florida newspaper, after being briefed on the investigation by local wildlife officials.
Citing the internal biology that makes marine animals susceptible to suffocation if removed from the water, she said “everyone seems to agree that it does and it shows. “.
Gibson added that the photo taken by the teenager – who would later defend his actions in an interview with the media – was almost certainly taken under the bridge where the dead baby dolphin was found by a biologist shortly afterwards. .
The picture taken by the teenager – who would later defend his actions in an interview with the outlet – was almost certainly taken under the bridge where the dead baby dolphin was found.
Another ocean expert confirmed Gibson’s claims, and a local fisherman added that he had seen the message shared online by the teenager.
Another ocean expert confirmed Gibson’s claims, and a local fisherman added that he saw the post shared by the teenager online.
“I was immediately enraged,” Jacksonville resident Kevin Beaugrand recalled of the now-deleted post, which screenshots show sparked a storm of backlash.
He called the decision to protect the protected creature a “crime against nature” and, like others, he was particularly irritated because of the dolphin’s age.
That rage surfaced after it emerged earlier this week that there was a strong possibility the dolphin seen in the snap had died as a result of the man’s actions – leading the teenager to take to Instagram to bizarrely refer to the incident as an “accident.”
“It was a (sic) accident,” the fisherman’s since-deleted response once read, obtained by News4Jax, as a chorus of public opinion continued to rage. “Why are you throwing so much shade.”
A bystander reacted angrily to the teenager, citing the well-known principle that dolphins are protected by federal marine mammal protection law and are therefore off-limits to any budding fisherman.
A bystander reacted angrily to the teenager, citing the well-known principle that dolphins are protected by federal marine mammal protection law.
Also picked up by News4Jax, the stern response read, “If you’re (sic) dumb enough to pull exactly one dolphin out of the water, you need to stay as far away from the bud of the ocean as possible.”
The reprimand quickly elicited a response from the fisherman, in which he appeared to sweep away the bandage he had just been given.
“Dude, whatever it is,” read the dismissive post, before the teenager appeared to give a reason why he defied such notorious local laws for a simple photo op.
That explanation, which has also since been deleted, simply said, “Once in a lifetime, catch a dolphin as a bycatch from shore. »
The observer who, like so many other outraged people, thinks he is a fisherman, would then reply: “You are giving us all a bad name. Just because you can do it doesn’t mean you should, silly.
He quickly added, “You clearly don’t even have any remorse for your actions. Titled punk.
During this period of backlash, local wildlife officials handed over their investigation of the dolphin’s discovered corpse to NOAA and launched a full federal investigation to determine if the creature died because of a third party.
Also during this period, the teenager in question claimed he was receiving death threats as a result of the controversy, after a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report confirmed the man’s discovery dead, one year old.
He also gave a brief statement to News Jax that appeared to go back over several of his since-deleted social media posts, stating that he and his friends had recovered the animal – which probably weighed around 40 pounds – after seeing it. lifeless in the water.
“We tried to see if he was still alive or if we could resuscitate him,” insisted the man. “There was nothing we could do.”
Still, he snapped a photo with the unauthorized capture before proudly posting the finished product online, and appears to be smiling in the photo.
One of his companions, seen in the background, is seen proudly giving the camera his middle finger as his friend appears to struggle to support his weight.
Gibson told News4Jax that it was hard to tell if the dolphin was dead in the photo, but if so, it hadn’t been long given the condition of his skin in the photo.
She told the station on Tuesday, shortly after NOAA became involved: “I think it’s very likely he died after – but there’s a very small chance he died recently when they left him. recovered in the water.”
However, the scientist quickly added, “But from the reports I’ve heard, the photo and the way people are behaving in the photo, it looks like they’ve caught it and he was potentially alive at the time.’ indicate.’
That said, the teenager seen in the photo has not yet been charged and therefore has not been named – although it is still illegal to disturb dolphins even if they are dead.
This is due to the Federal Marine Mammal Protection Act, which protects living and deceased dolphins from harassment, hunting, capture or even manipulation by humans.
Additionally, as several experts have made clear, dolphins like the bottlenose dolphin seen in the two photos rely on their buoyancy to breathe – meaning that if they are away from the natural underwater environment, breathing becomes difficult.
If prosecuted, the man could face civil penalties of up to $34,457, as well as a year in jail and additional fines.
