MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING NETWORKS

Please call one of the marine mammal agencies listed BELOW to report a stranding. The links are grouped by region to make your selection easier. If you find a broken or outdated link, or know of an excellent related link which we are missing, please contact us.

• Southwest Region (California)
• Northwest Region
• Pacific Island Region (including Guam and American Samoa)
• Southeast Region (including Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands)
• Northeast Region
• British Columbia, Canada
• International

When reporting a stranding, it is important to have the following information ready to report:

1) Identification or description of animal (size, color, etc.)
2) Number of animals involved
3) Condition of animal (alive, dead, or injured)
4) Exact location and directions to the strand site
5) Names and telephone numbers of people involved
6) Date and time of your observations

If you find a Sea Otter you think is ill or abandoned follow these steps:

1) Don't touch it or try to catch it—it's illegal, and sea otters can bite.
2) Don't pick up an otter pup that seems to be alone in the water—its mother is probably diving for food nearby.
3) Keep people and pets away from the otter.
4) Don't wrap a stranded otter in a blanket—it will overheat very quickly.
5) Wildlife rehabilitation specialists will come and determine whether the otter needs help. If it does, they will capture it and take it in for care.

Remember, sea otters are wild animals and can deliver a severe bite!

All Marine Mammals protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act & the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Only authorized wildlife rehabilitators—like the agencies above—are allowed to catch or move them.

Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal or sea turtle.

Live Strandings in Santa Cruz County or Monterey County:

The Marine Mammal Center
831-633-6298 (Moss Landing)
415-289-7325 (Sausalito)

Dead Cetaceans, Pinnipeds, or Sea Turtles:

Found in Monterey County:

Found in Santa Cruz County:

UC Santa Cruz
831-459-2883 (Long Marine Lab)

Live or Dead Sea Otters:

Central California:

Monterey Bay Aquarium
831-648-4840 (sea otter 24-hour emergency line)

The Marine Mammal Center
831-633-6298 (Moss Landing)
415- 289-7325 (Sausalito)

Monterey County SPCA
831-373-2631

Statewide:

California Marine Mammal Center 415-289-SEAL
California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) 916-653-7764

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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

Northeast Stranding and Disentanglement Program 978-281-9351

Connecticut/Rhode Island

• Mystic Aquarium 860-572-5955

Delaware

• MERR Institute, Inc. 302-228-5029

Maine

• Maine Marine Animal Reporting Hotline 800-532-9551
• Allied Whale, College of the Atlantic 207-288-5644
• Maine Department of Marine Resources 207-633-9500
• University of New England 207-915-0169

Maryland

• Maryland Department of Natural Resources/Cooperative Oxford Laboratory 800-628-9944
• National Aquarium in Baltimore/Marine Animal Rescue Program 410-576-1098

Massachusetts

• Protected Resources Division/NMFS Northeast Region 978-281-9300
• Protected Species Branch/NMFS Northeast Fisheries Science Center 508-495-2000
• National Park Service/Cape Cod National Seashore 508-349-3785
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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

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Please contact the following agencies if you find a stranded marine mammal:

• Australia Marine Mammal Rescue & Research
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