Two Offshore Dolphins Tagged

Dolphins Tagged Off the West Florida Shelf

Tagging Gorzy – S9779 S103 2024-12-18 B410ja-w

We were able to sneak in a day of offshore field work between fronts the week of Dec. 18, 2024. We tagged two Atlantic spotted dolphins off the central west coast of Florida as part of our ongoing testing of our pole-mounted Tag Attachment Device (TADpole). These are the fourth and fifth dolphins tagged with the device, designed and built by our partners at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

The Atlantic spotted dolphins nicknamed “Angel” and “Gorzy” are named in honor of two colleagues we recently lost, Eric Angel Ramos and Jay Gorzelany, and this morning, Angel was 27 nautical miles off Siesta Key, and Gorzy was 37 nautical miles off Boca Grande.

Read more about this research here

(Tagging and tracking are supported by the NOAA RESTORE Act (through WHOI), Mote Scientific Foundation, and Fahlo. Tagging was performed under NMFS/MMPA Scientific Research Permit No. 26622.)

Tracking Maps

These are the tracking maps for two Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis) tagged on Dec. 18, 2024. The largest dot shows is the most recent location for the date listed (with date and local time alongside the tag ID number). Unless otherwise indicated, locations are of highest quality (with an error radius <1,500 m). The previous three days of locations are shown on the map.

Please note that tagging and tracking are supported by the NOAA RESTORE Act (through the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute), Mote Scientific Foundation and Fahlo. Tagging was performed under NMFS/MMPA Scientific Research Permit No. 26622.

PTT 240136 (nicknamed “Angel”) — For unknown reasons, Angel’s tag stopped sending signals after Jan. 30, 2025 and the final map is a cumulative look at tracks for both dolphins.
PTT 240137 (nicknamed “Gorzy”) — For unknown reasons, Gorzy’s tag stopped sending signals after Dec. 27, 2024 (so maps after that date show only Angel).

And finally, genetics testing confirmed in January 2025 that both dolphins were males.

18Dec2024