Nicholas

Nicholas is a 20 year old male rescued Atlantic Costal Bottlenose dolphin that lives at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. He was rescued on the 23rd/24th of December, 2002, is the most energetic at the facility. Nicholas is most notable for his sunburn scars on his head and back.

## A Long Rescue

In the afternoon of the 23rd of December, 2002, 6 month old Nicholas and his mother, Noelle, were found stranded in Bullfrog Creek, near Gibsonton, Florida, by two fisherman. Finding them in "ankle-deep water", the fisherman kept them wet/under shade using their T-shirts. Unfortunately, the pair had already been stranded out of water for quite some time, and developed second and third degree burns on the top of their bodies. Nicholas had followed his mother up onto shore from his young-aged attachment, despite not having any physical issues at the time. It is unknown how long they had been stranded, or on the beach, before the pair's discovery.

When rescuers arrived at the scene, the original plan was to transport the dolphins to "south Florida" for short-term rehabilitation. This failed, and the Florida Aquarium was chosen instead. The rescue and confusion went overnight, with the dolphins still on the scene of the original stranding. They were eventually transported in the morning of the 24th, however it was soon realized that Nicholas and Noelle would need long-term rehabilitation instead, likely because of the intense burns they suffered. Dennis Kellenberger, Clearwater Marine Aquarium's former executive director, was called to make the decision to bring the dolphins to CMA or not. At the time, they had 56 turtles in rehab, as well as short staff for the holidays. Despite that, he decided that Nicholas and Noelle would be taken in.

## Rehab and Recovery

Upon arrival at CMA(as well as not actually swimming for a few hours), 120 pound Nicholas was treated for his 2nd and 3rd degree sunburns, which were located from the front of his dorsal to his melon, as well as around his blowhole. He received antibiotics and nursed from Noelle several times, showing character and some energy. Because of his Christmas Eve rescue, the pair was named "Nicholas" and "Noelle". Tragically, Noelle passed away on the 27th of December, 2002, following a long battle from her respiratory illnesses, and what was suspected to be pneumonia. By the 30th of December, some toys and play sessions were introduced to him, which showed his strong and curious personality. By the 2nd of January, 2003, Nicholas became very interested and aware of his surroundings.

Despite the playful moments, Nicholas despised being treated for his sunburns, which covered 36% of his body(more than one third). Staff members had to forcefully rub the injuries to make clear of all infections that were possible. His tissue was still bleeding when this happened, which was a good sign of blood flow, living/growing tissue, and no blockages. It took around 6 minutes to try and capture him for this process, and he would constantly thrash around and try and break free from the pain. By mid January, Nicholas had lost 20 pounds since his mother had died, followed by another 10 pounds in the coming month. Nicholas had shown some interest in fish, and thankfully began to eat a few following the struggle of bottle feeding. Biologists chipped in and sent CMA bear milk from a zoo food supplier, though Nicholas couldn't seem to get a good grip on the bottle. This resulted in tube feeding the milk formula, which contained chopped herring, herbs, and vitamins, and antibiotics. Slowly but surely, Nicholas was weened onto whole fish.

## Sources

1. ↑ "Saving Nicholas" - *19th of January, 2003*