Plague Killing Hundreds of Dolphins

By Amy Sinatra Ayres

More than 200 dead or dying bottlenose dolphins have washed up on the shores of the mid-Atlantic in July and August.

The animals are suffering from a mysterious plague that's baffling and concerning to scientists. The deaths have been formally classified as an "Unusual Mortality Event" by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"We started getting really alarmed by July 25, when we started getting more than one animal per day. That was the tipping point," said Susan Barco, a researcher at the Virginia Aquarium Marine Mammal Center. Experts are concerned that the deaths are a sign of an ailing coastal ecosystem, and fear that many more dolphins may die before the culprit is determined. - Read it at NBC News

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