people designated as part of a network 

 to cover strandings along the North 

 Carolina coast. Whom you call de- 

 pends on where you are. The beaches 

 of Cape Hatteras National Seashore, 

 Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge 

 and Cape Lookout National Seashore 

 are under federal jurisdiction. Contact 

 the park service staff immediately at 

 these telephone numbers with the in- 

 formation you have gathered on the 

 stranding: Cape Hatteras (919) 473- 

 2117, Pea Island (919) 987-2394 and 

 Cape Lookout (919) 728-2121. 



If the stranding is on state property, 

 contact the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service (NMFS) office in Morehead 

 City at (919) 728-4595. NMFS is the 

 government agency with legal 

 authority over marine mammals. 



The Southeastern United States 

 Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle 

 Salvage Network notifies area agencies 

 and biologists for every stranding 

 reported to their toll-free number: 1- 

 800-327-6545. 



While it is important to contact the 

 Smithsonian Institution's Marine 

 Mammal Salvage Program, Potter 

 suggests you first contact agencies 

 closest to the stranding site as they are 

 in a better position to take immediate 



action. These agencies will contact the 

 Smithsonian at the first chance. The 

 telephone number for the salvage 

 program is (202) 357-1920. 



Marine Mammal Program 



Smithsonian Institution 



Washington D.C. 



20560 



If, for some reason, you have not 

 been able to reach any of the agencies 

 listed above, call the Coast Guard, 

 state Division of Marine Fisheries, 

 local police department or county 

 sheriff, wildlife department, local 

 Marine Resources Centers (Fort 

 Fisher (919) 458-8257, Bogue Banks 

 (919) 726-0121 and Roanoke Island 

 (919) 473-3493), universities or 

 colleges, area humane society or the 

 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 

 to Animals. 



Remember to leave your name and 

 phone number in case the agencies you 

 have called need to reach you for more 

 details on the stranding. 



What to do until help comes 



In the event that nobody is able to 

 respond immediately, follow any in- 

 structions given by telephone. The 

 following steps should also be taken: 



If the animal is still alive, be 

 cautious for your own protection. Live 

 animals should be kept wet and protec- 

 ted from the sun. Cover with wet 

 blankets, but keep the blowhole area 

 open. If there is sun, shade the animal 

 with a lean-to made of driftwood, 

 towels or any other material that is 

 handy. Ice packs may be applied to 

 flippers, dorsal fins and flukes to help 

 prevent overheating. Do not try to 

 move stranded marine mammals, 

 either dead or alive. And, above all 

 else, protect the animal from harass- 

 ment or mutilation by other animals or 

 by crowds. 



David Lee offers a warning and a bit 

 of common sense tempered by ex- 

 perience in dealing with marine mam- 

 mal strandings: "Almost all marine 

 mammals that are on the beach are go- 

 ing to die in spite of what you do for 

 them. And, if you lug them out to sea, 

 you're just prolonging their agony, and 

 they're just going to wash up some- 

 place else." 



A museum specimen 



In 1928, a 55-foot sperm whale stranded 

 at Wrightsville Beach. It took seven people 

 seven days to flesh down the carcass and 

 bury it. After a year, the skeleton was un- 

 earthed and transported to Raleigh where 

 the bones were spread out on the roof of 

 the Agriculture Building to bleach in the 

 sun. Many months and staff hours later, 

 the skeleton was put back together and 

 hung in the museum where it has been on 

 exhibit for 50 years. 



Photos courtesy of the N.C. State Museum of Natural History 



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