Rescued dolphin thrives year after arriving in Florida Keys

MARATHON, Fla. (AP) — Officials say a rescued juvenile dolphin that was airlifted from Texas to the Florida Keys about one year ago is thriving. The young bottlenose dolphin is living in a Keys-based marine mammal facility. The orphaned male calf dubbed Ranger was discovered in June 2021. He was stranded and suffering from a respiratory infection and dehydration. Ranger was rescued by his dead mother and deemed too young to forage and survive in the wild. The National Marine Fisheries Service chose the Dolphin Research Center in Florida as Ranger’s permanent home. The center’s vice president of animal care and training says Ranger is now fully adapted and “doing incredibly.”