Emergency plan to be develop for mass of stranded dolphins

Wildlife authorities in WA's lower south-west are developing a response plan for mass dolphin strandings in response to an incident at the D'Entrecasteaux National Park earlier this month.
About 40 dolphins became stranded on a 30-kilometre stretch of coast between Black Point and the Warren River mouth.

Nine of the mammals survived.
The Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM) has now decided to set up a marine mammal stranding response plan for the Warren region.

Donnelly district manager John Gillard says the strategy will draw on a similar plan developed after last year's whale strandings in Busselton.

"We'll be looking at particular sections of coastline, individual species, and we'll document the appropriate strategy or response, whether it's other striped dolphins at Yeagarup or whether it might be another species closer to Windy Harbour," he said.

"And we'll hopefully be able to develop some clear strategies on how we'll deal with that."