The Israel Nature and Parks Authority asked the public on Tuesday to help locate a dolphin that washed ashore at Jerusalem Beach in Tel Aviv after civilians returned it to the sea earlier in the morning.
“In the morning, a dolphin was seen after washing ashore in the city of Tel Aviv-Jaffa (Jerusalem Beach), and was returned to the water by well-intentioned civilians,” the authority said in an update.
“Due to concern that the dolphin is injured and needs help, the Israel Nature and Parks Authority asks that if you encounter the dolphin in question, do not return it to the water. Call the Israel Nature and Parks Authority hotline at *3639 and wait beside it until the professional team arrives so that it can be taken for treatment.”
Over the weekend, the authority also warned the public that any injured sea animal found near the coast should be left alone and not returned to the water, mainly because tampering with its injuries could worsen its condition.
Israel releases turtles back to the wild
The warning came after the authority announced over the weekend that five sea turtles were released back into the sea on Friday at the Beit Yanai National Park beach after completing their rehabilitation process at the Israel Nature and Parks Authority’s National Sea Turtle Rescue Center.
About 250 people, mostly families and children, arrived at Beit Yanai National Park beach to watch the release of Miriam, Chapa, Matzav, Ran and Nidal, the five sea turtles that returned to the sea.
The turtles spent recent months at the National Sea Turtle Rescue Center receiving veterinary care after arriving with limb injuries caused by entanglement in plastic bags. Their rehabilitation is now complete, and staff released the turtles near the shoreline to help them reach the water quickly.
Dolphins sighted in Israel after more than a year
Dolphins were sighted near Israel in March of 2025, when Shlomi and Hawks, who previously visited the coast of Israel in 2024, were spotted eight kilometers off the coast of Rishon LeZion. The sighting comes amidst reports of a declining apex predator population in the Mediterranean region.
“During an inspection cruise by the Marine Unit inspectors 2.5 miles off the coast of Rishon LeZion following a trawler, three dolphins were suddenly spotted,” reported Guy Levian, the director of the Marine Unit area at the Nature and Parks Authority. “The three played in the waves for several minutes and continued on their way.”
Two of the individuals were later identified as Shlomi and Hawks, a pair of common bottlenose dolphins sighted in November 2024 during a collaborative survey by the Delfis Association and the Morris Kahn Research Station, the Nature and Parks Authority reported.
Researchers identified the two through images of their dorsal fins, which are “excellent means of identification, just like a human fingerprint,” said Kim Kobo, a researcher at the Morris Kahn Marine Research Center.
Yuval Levy and Yoav Etiel contributed to this report.
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