Cape Cod continues to be a popular tourist destination, even during sweater season. It has some of the most underrated beach towns, but recent data suggests the water may not be the best habitat for dolphins.
We'll take a closer look at problematic statistics, and why dolphins are getting stuck at alarming rates.
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We're also going to examine the "yellow tide" issue at Cape Cod, and why this was also deemed as problematic earlier in the year. Scientists are hoping to see the trend turn in the upcoming years - but climate change might make that impossible.
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Warming Waters At Cape Cod Are Changing The Availability Of Animal Food
Wellfleet, Cape Cod with view of the Atlantic Ocean and Massachusetts Coast in New England
US News called it a bad year for dolphins on Cape Cod due to warming waters. Scientists are hoping to see a change in the future, as the shifting water levels is leaving the availability of food drastically less compared to what it used to be. The result, 342 live, stranded dolphins this year alone - that's five times the regular average, according to data from the International Fund of Animal Welfare.
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This month, the trend has gotten worse, with more than 50 animals stranded on multiple beaches and waterways within the span of seven days. Scientists haven't found the direct reason for the stranded dolphins, but are seeing a growing trend of smaller dolphins swimming close to shore in an attempt to find food.
Brian Sharp, marine mammal rescue team lead for the organization and a biologist by training, links climate change at Cape Cod to the ongoing issue.
"Any effect of climate change on ocean temperature, salinity, is going to affect the prey resource of the fish," he said. "That as part of the food web is going to have kind of that ripple, that cascade effect throughout the food web, which eventually leads to marine mammals."
Regina Asmutis-Silvia, executive director of conservation group Whale and Dolphin Conservation North America added with U.S. News that the issue is far beyond just Cape Cod.
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"We have had noticeable unseasonably warm temperatures on land lately around Cape Cod to remind us we are facing changes in the climate. But those changes don't stop at the shoreline. They are being felt in the ocean too," she said.
A Growing Yellow Tide Problem Is Also Taking Place At Cape Cod
Scientific American also took a deeper dive into the state of Cape Cod back in February. The video states that problems are taking place below the surface, with "yellow tides" rising. A once stunning view on Cape Cod is currently in jeopardy because of bad smells, deceased fish, and lots of algae getting stuck just about everywhere.
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The Cape Cod National Seashore Staff Discovered A Rare Object Dating Back To The Cold War In April
Lewis Bay Lighthouse Hyannis Harbor on Cape Cod in Massachusetts
Cape Cod saw a completely different type of discovery back in April. According to Fox News, a mysterious object was found, dating back to the Cold War. The object was found on Marconi Beach in Massachusetts. The beach staff was able to remove the object and determined that it was a relic able to connect to the fuselage from a top-secret Cold War Program.
"Park historian Bill Burke examined the object and determined that it was in fact the fuselage of a RCAT (Remote Control Aerial Target)," Cape Cod National Seashore officials reported on Facebook back in April.
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"RCATs were drone planes used for target practice for anti-aircraft training off Marconi at a former United States military training camp (Camp Wellfleet) during the 1940s and 50s."
The National Park Services did not have any plans for the rare RCAT.