Hundreds of dolphins beached, saved in Philippines (Roundup)

Feb 10, 2009, 12:24 GMT

   Manila - More than 200 dolphins beached themselves Tuesday in the northern Philippines but local fishermen and volunteers were able to guide them safely back to sea hours later, officials said.

   The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources said at least four of the mammals were found dead in Pilar and Balanga towns in Bataan province, 75 kilometres north-west of Manila.

   Most of the dolphins had crowded the sea off Pilar town beginning early Tuesday, said provincial Governor Enrique Garcia, whose office immediately called on public and private agencies for help.

   'This is a phenomenon,' he told a radio station in Manila. 'It is only now that this happened in our province.'

   The Fisheries Bureau said most of the dolphins returned to the sea after fishermen and volunteers under the supervision of experts guided the mammals to deep water.

   The agency said it plans to conduct a 'water quality and water parameter test' as part of an investigation into the incident.

   Beached dolphins are common in the Philippine archipelago of more than 7,000 islands but rarely occur in such huge numbers.

   Bureau Director Malcolm Sarmiento said the dolphins could have reacted to a 'heat wave or disturbance at sea,' such as a possible major underwater earthquake.

   He said he ordered 72 hours of monitoring of the coastal areas in Bataan to ensure that the dolphins would not return.