A pacific white-sided dolphin was stranded yesterday afternoon off the visitor’s trail at Lime Kiln State Park on San Juan Island.

“There was a large deep laceration that could have caused it to bleed out,” said Eric Eisenhardt, San Juan County Marine Stranding Network research curator. “But we won’t know anything conclusive until tests are done.”

Although the laceration looks similar to a propeller wound, researchers must wait until an official necropsy is preformed to know the true cause of death.

The dolphin appears to possibly be an adult or sub adult. Official measurements will be taken at a later date.

Pacific white-sided dolphins travel in numbers varying from a dozen to many hundreds. These dolphins reach a length of seven to eight feet and weigh up to 300 pounds. They eat squid and small schooling fish such as anchovies, herring, sardines, and hake. It is believed they feed largely at night. The pacific white-sided dolphin is commonly found in the coastal waters of the North Pacific.

“They typically live in the open ocean … sometimes they make trips into inland waters like the Strait of Juan de Fuca,” said Eric Eisenhardt.

According to Jen Olson, stranding coordinator for the Marine Stranding Network, a herd of Pacific white-sided dolphins was last seen in our waters on March 18, 19 and 21 in the Haro Strait region and by Vancouver Island.

This is the second stranding of 2014. The first was an adult harbor seal.

This is the second stranding of 2014. The first was an adult harbor seal.