This report details marine mammal stranding rates, trends, and activities in the United States for both 2020 and 2021. In 2020, there were 5,400 confirmed marine mammal strandings; in 2021, there were 5,524.
In February 2024, NOAA Fisheries and partners responded to a dead spinner dolphin yearling and a dead humpback whale calf in Hawaiʻi. Examinations revealed their deaths were likely due to vessel strikes.
A new study led by NOAA Fisheries outlines marine mammal populations’ estimated vulnerability to changing ocean conditions as part of ongoing Climate Vulnerability Assessments.