37 Dolphins Strand at Cape Ray Newfoundland
On 18 March 2014, between 30 and 40 white-beaked dolphins died near Cape Ray. Wayne Ledwell said, “The conditions were pretty severe out there as far as wind, and eventually they succumbed to the stress of being in the situation they were in.” He did not observe the actual stranding but felt that the dolphins probably panicked and drowned. The video below looks to me more like they were slammed hard between large chucks of ice and the rocky coast. I have been in many situations where a strong wind blows surface ice both into and away from shore, depending on the direction of the wind. It is very common for ice to be blown from one side of the Gulf to the other in this area. In my opinion, a strong shoreward wind (25 to 40 knots) blew the non-navigating dolphins into the rocky coastline near Cape Ray. They had no idea which way to swim to get back to deep water. The strong winds then blew in large chucks of ice on top of them.. They were killed or injured by being slammed around betw...