Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Troubling: Three humpback whales - like this one - and one pygmy sperm whale have washed ashore infected with crustacean morbillivirus, a virus responsilbe for the death of close to 800 dolphins. Experts are now trying to determine whether the virus was the cause of death for the whales.

A virus that has killed nearly 800 dolphins has now shown up in four whales, which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.Government marine experts are working to determine whether the virus - cetacean morbillivirus - was responsible for the deaths.If proven, the development would be of major concern to the global whale population, judging by the amount of dolphins the virus continues to kill.Three humpback whales - which are listed as an endangered species - and one pygmy sperm whale have stranded since July 1.

Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Just this year, there have been 14 whale strandings, which is double the six-year average of seven. This whale was found near Ocean Shores, Washington, on June 13, 2013

Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

East Coast: The four infected whales washed ashore on the East Coast of the United States between Massachusetts and Georgia

That already surpasses the last major morbillivirus outbreak in 1987, when 740 were confirmed dead.
Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Third of the day: Virginia Aquarium Stranding Response Team members Liz Schell (left) and Krystal Rodrique (right) record their third deceased dolphin in Ocean View Beach in Norfolk, Virginia on Aug. 1, 2013

Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Sarah Rose from the Virginia Aquarium Stranding Response Team prepares for a necropsy on a dolphin that died from morbillivirus

The virus causes death by suppressing the dolphin's immune system, leaving them vulnerable to infections such as pneumonia.
Despite a similarity to the measles virus, it poses no threat to humans.
Sadly officials have said there is nothing they can do to protect dolphins in the wild.
Another round of dolphins have recently washed ashore in Florida, as they migrate south to warmer weather.
However they have not been included in the virus tally because proper tests have not been conducted.

Virus Killed 800 Dolphins Four Whale which washed ashore off the East Coast of America.

Danielle Monaghan, a staffer at the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine, New Jersey, photographs a dead dolphin that washed ashore on Aug. 21, 2013, in Spring Lake. This dolphin was the 63rd to die on New Jersey's shores since July

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