TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA, 海洋保育署) unveiled its 2024 report on Monday (March 3), revealing alarming statistics on stranded whales, dolphins, and sea turtles, with Lienchiang County and Yilan County recording the highest incidents. The findings detailed 159 whale and dolphin strandings, including 135 fatalities and 24 survivors, alongside 325 sea turtle strandings, with 237 deaths and 88 recoveries.
The OCA collected 192 whale and dolphin samples and 35 sea turtle samples last year. It identified bycatch and disease as the primary causes of whale and dolphin strandings, whereas sea turtles primarily stranded along the coast. The agency successfully released eight whales and dolphins and 34 sea turtles in 2024 and continues caring for 19.
According to the OCA, climate change may increase typhoon frequency and intensity, potentially affecting whale and dolphin navigation and movement paths. Human activities also pose a threat. In at least four cases last year, individuals attempted to push stranded whales and dolphins back into the sea, causing injuries and pulmonary complications that proved fatal.
Experts caution that whales, dolphins, and sea turtles are air-breathing animals; if pushed back into the sea without examination, they may be unable to surface for air due to exhaustion or loss of balance, leading to water inhalation. The OCA urges people to call the Coast Guard's "118" hotline for assistance, providing detailed location, time, and animal status while maintaining a quiet environment and keeping crowds away.