On Saturday, September 22, the Peel-Harvey resident dolphin community lost another member; a sub adult male dolphin named Lionel.
Based on his body length, he was thought to be approximately 10 years old.
A local kayaker found Lionel deceased on a sandbar in the Serpentine River, upstream from Lake Goegrup.
We first observed Lionel in town waters in Mandurah in April 2016 and have seen him since approximately 50 times.
He was classed as a juvenile then and although he was often part of a bigger group, he seemed to have already formed close affiliation with three other juvenile males, Beaky, Kid Billy and Linkin.
Lionel was seen throughout the Peel-Harvey waterways and even sometimes out in the ocean at the southern end of Comet Bay.
On the left hand side of his body there appears to be sunburn scarring, which indicates he has spent some time stranded in the past.
The first, and only, time we have observed him alone and in the Serpentine River was in November 2017.
We followed him travelling upstream until he disappeared from our view to Lake Goegrup, which is too shallow for us to enter with our research boat.
Lake Goegrup and the Serpentine River have claimed many dolphins’ lives as they have gotten caught behind or on sandbars.
To our knowledge, 14 of the 75 strandings recorded in the Peel-Harvey have occurred in the Serpentine since 1990, one of them on the same sandbar that Lionel was found.
Thirty-two individuals have gotten caught, seven of them of lost their lives.
We encourage people who use the rivers to keep an eye out for dolphins in trouble, especially during low tides and over the summer months.
Stranded individuals should be reported to the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions helpline on (08) 9474 9055.
- Krista Nicholson is a PhD candidate at Murdoch University. Search Mandurah Dolphin Research Project on Facebook for more info.
