Dolphins have been rescued

FIVE striped dolphins were rescued last Thursday after stranding themselves on a Dunsborough beach.

Three of the dolphins became stranded late Wednesday and were encouraged to deeper water but returned overnight with another two.

On Wednesday night CALM officers and volunteers transported the animals by boat about 8km offshore for release after attempts to move them to a deeper section of the beach were not successful.

Their return to the beach on Thursday was reported about 6am.

On Thursday morning South West CALM officers transported the five dolphins in a Naturaliste Marine Rescue boat to deep water to the west of Cape Naturaliste for release.

CALM Blackwood district manager Greg Mair said one of the dolphins had some injuries but all were successfully released.

"Striped dolphins can be temperamental to handle and have a tendency to thrash violently and occasionally stress quickly to the point of death, so it is quite a relief that these dolphins were conveyed to deeper water without further trauma," he said.

"They were checked by a veterinarian to ensure they were well enough to be transported by boat before release."

The last stranding of striped dolphins in the area was a stranding of 24 in Augusta in 1989.