Release and follow-up monitoring of bottlenose dolphin "Val" in Old Tampa Bay
By Brian Balmer, MSc candidate

On February 12^th, 2006, an adult female bottlenose dolphin stranded on a mud flat near Oldsmar, Florida in the northwest corner of Old Tampa Bay. The animal was covered in abscesses, dehydrated, and emaciated. It was rescued by Clearwater Marine Aquarium staff and brought to Mote Marine Laboratory’s Dolphin and Whale Hospital. For the next three months, MML0605, or "Val", was rehabilitated by the Dolphin and Whale Hospital.

On May 23^rd, 2006, Val was successfully released back into Tampa Bay, on the north side of the Courtney Campbell Causeway. She was fixed with a VHF radio transmitter to track her progress for the following month. Within two hours of her release, Val was observed socializing with 6-8 other animals in the area. Over the next month, Val was visually located by boat five times and triangulated by land once. During her sightings, Val was routinely seen with other animals, traveling and socializing as well as foraging. Over the month of follow-up monitoring, she spent the majority of her time in the NW corner of Tampa Bay primarily between the Gandy Bridge and Courtney Campbell Causeway.

The post-monitoring success of Val would not have been possible without the help of numerous Mote Marine Laboratory staff, volunteers, and interns as well as Galati Marina for logistical support. Tracking was supported by the J.H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program.