Hubbs Marine Mammal Research & Rescue

Happy International Day of Women and Girls in Science! 🔬✨Today we celebrate the dedication, innovation, and impact of women and girls in STEM. Here’s to forging new frontiers and defining the future of science! 💙🚀

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to see us at Inside Look @SeaWorld this past weekend! We had a great time sharing our dolphin rescue and research efforts and spending the day with our amazing partners! Don't miss this unique opportunity next weekend (January 17-18).

Thank you to everyone who visited us at the Marine Mammal Festival at the Florida Oceanographic Coastal Center this weekend! 🐬💙💙 It was such a wonderful event, and we loved connecting with an enthusiastic community that shares our passion for dolphin conservation.

Grateful for unwavering support from the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund for dolphin conservation. Their partnership enables our research, rescue, and monitoring efforts, helping us protect and provide care when it matters most. 💙🐬

Hot off the press! 🐬🧠Our new study with @univmiami, @brain_ chem_Labs, & @BluWrldResearch, reveals brain changes in Indian River Lagoon dolphins, linked with bloom neurotoxins, that mirror those in Alzheimer’s disease. Read more: rdcu.be/eISka

Another spook-tacular Creatures Fest is in the books! 🎃👻 Big thanks to everyone who stopped by & to the boo-tiful Barrier Island Center for hosting us! Seeing so many costume-clad kiddos excited to learn about our dolphin research & rescue made our weekend! 🐬🧡

Our team made a splash @orlandoboatshow this last weekend! 🐬 It was incredible to share our dolphin research and rescue efforts and connect with so many passionate members of the boating community. A huge thanks to VForce Marine letting us join your amazing team!

Last week, we hosted a dolphin disentanglement workshop which included remote disentanglement techniques & tools, drone documentation, & on-water training.  Thank you @BluWrldResearch for leading, and to all for sharing their expertise to address this growing issue!

This week we responded to a mother dolphin entangled in a crab pot line. In coordination with NOAA, we used specialized tools to free the mother who quickly rejoined her calf. Remember, in Florida, if you discover an entangled or stranded dolphin, call 1-888-404-3922 right away!

It's baby season! 🐬💙During last week’s survey, our team spotted three newborn dolphin calves — including the 6th calf a well-known dolphin, PopTop! We're thrilled to welcome these newest additions and can't wait to watch them grow. Congratulations to all the proud dolphin moms!

This video really “muddies the waters”! We frequently observe dolphins lifting their flukes in the air before surfacing with mud on their head & dorsal fin. It’s likely the animals are foraging on bottom dwelling fish. Here, “Ande”, is teaching her calf “head-stand” feeding.

Our team made a splash @orlandoboatshow this weekend! 🚤 It was great connecting with the #boating community & sharing our #dolphin research and rescue efforts. 🐬 But we got to say, @twiggyshow was the highlight! 🐿️ Thank you VForce Marine for letting us join your amazing team!

This week our team successfully freed a young dolphin from a crab pot entanglement in the Halifax River. Once free, we monitored the dolphin for over as hour as it traveled & socialized. Thank you volunteers and community members for your help saving this animal! #DolphinRescue

Dolphin calving season has begun! We are using our drone to gather dolphin footage, hoping to predict pregnancy from LIDAR measurements. Stay tuned to see who will be a new mom ! Thanks @YamahaRW  for getting us out there & @4imprint  for keeping us warm! #FirstDayofSpring

We had an amazing time last weekend at the Melbourne Police Kid’s Fishing Clinic! It was wonderful to meet so many enthusiastic young people and to share ways to help protect local dolphins from increasing entanglement risk. Together, we can create a safer future for dolphins!

We are excited to welcome our spring interns, Elizabeth, Inez, and Sammy. They have already begun assisting with stranding response, bottlenose dolphin surveys, data entry, image analyses, microplastics analyses, and outreach efforts. Welcome aboard - we’re so happy to have you!

We've responded to 8 #IndianRiverLagoon dolphin strandings in 2025, including "Boston", a young male who survived a boat strike in 2018 💔🐬. Bird flu is confirmed in 2 cases & we continue monitoring dolphin health with @NOAAFisheriesSE. Big thanks to our partners in this effort.

As we recap 2024, we are so grateful to our partners, supporters & volunteers who make our efforts possible! With your help we responded to 69 strandings, conducted 137 vessel/drone surveys, and submitted 3 publications and 9 abstracts, while continuing our outreach efforts!

Great news! We arrived to assist a young distressed dolphin, nick-named Fleury, that became entrapped in a shallow canal system, to find that the animal had freed itself overnight as water levels increased. Thanks to the watchful residents, @MyFWC, & @NOAAFisheriesSE!

Great news! Using our drone, we confirmed that “JOVI,” who was reported entangled, has shed the gear! The animal was seen socializing with its sibling and several other dolphins. You can help protect local dolphins by promptly reporting entangled animals to @MYFWC: 1-888-404-FWCC