Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program | NOAA Fisheries
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:12
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program | NOAA Fisheries
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Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
This national program coordinates emergency responses to sick, injured, distressed, or dead marine mammals.
National
The Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program coordinates emergency responses to sick, injured, distressed, or dead seals, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises, and whales. The 1992 Amendments to the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
formalized this program and designated NOAA Fisheries' Office of Protected Resources as the lead agency to coordinate related activities. The program focuses on four primary areas:
Stranding and entanglement networks.
Unusual mortality event response.
Biosurveillance and baseline health research.
John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program
Stranding and Entanglement Response Networks
Image
The MMHSRP works with volunteer
stranding
and
entanglement networks
as well as local, tribal, state, and federal government agencies to coordinate and conduct emergency responses to stranded or entangled marine mammals. The Program provides network members with a
Stranding Agreement
from the NOAA Fisheries regional offices to ensure that all activities performed are safe for both responders and animals. The network members provide staff and local response capabilities, independently raising funds to cover the majority of their costs. The stranding and entanglement networks also perform a valuable biosurveillance role, as they are often the first to detect threats to marine mammal populations. To that end, stranding networks provide data to the MMHSRP through
Level A Data Collection
, which is stored in the
National Stranding Database
.
Unusual Mortality Event Response
Image
While marine mammal strandings occur frequently, there are some cases where an unusually high number of live or dead animals may come ashore over a relatively short time span in the same geographic area. These
Unusual Mortality Events
can be a result of events such as a disease outbreak, environmental factors, or oil spills.
The MMHSRP coordinates the
Working Group on Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Events
, which leads the response and investigation into the causes of the UME.
You can contribute to the
Unusual Mortality Event Fund
,
which helps fund our stranding networks’ response to, and investigation of, these events.
Biosurveillance and Baseline Health Research
Biosurveillance and baseline health research on marine mammals are important components of the program. While not “emergency response,” these studies provide context during a health emergency and may help predict when and where events may occur in the future. An important aspect of this program is the
National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank
, which provides protocols and techniques for the long-term storage of samples from marine mammals that can be used as baseline health comparisons for retrospective analyses.
John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program
The
Prescott Grant Program
provides funding for members of the national marine mammal stranding network through a competitive grant process.
From 2001 through 2023, the Program awarded more than $75.4 million in funding through 893 competitive grants to Stranding Network members in 26 states, the District of Columbia, two territories, and three tribes.
These grants support the rescue and
rehabilitation
of stranded marine mammals, data collection from living or dead stranded marine mammals for health research, and facility operating costs.
Regional Programs
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
More Information
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Reports
Marine Mammal Protection Act Policies, Guidance, and Regulations
Final
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (2022)
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
(2009)
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program: Program Development Plan
(1994)
Marine Mammal Rehabilitation
Understanding Marine Mammal Euthanasia
Displaced Dolphins: Post-hurricane Response
Do Not Move Stranded Whales, Dolphins, or Porpoises
More Information
Report a Stranded Marine Mammal
Report an Entangled Marine Mammal
National Marine Mammal Stranding Response Network
National Marine Mammal Entanglement Response Networks
Unusual Mortality Event Program
Prescott Grant Program
Frequent Questions: Necropsies (Animal Autopsies) of Marine Mammals
Contact the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
Recent News
Feature Story
Celebrating Earth Day with NOAA Fisheries
Feature Story
,
National
National
Feature Story
Nominate an Outstanding Steward in Marine, Coastal, or Riverine Habitat Conservation
Feature Story
,
National
National
Leadership Message
50 Years of Innovation and Leadership: Celebrating the Magnuson-Stevens Act
Leadership Message
,
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
International
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
International
More News
Last updated by
Office of Protected Resources
on August 07, 2025
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
Unusual Mortality Event
Prescott Grant Program
Marine Mammal Strandings
Skip to main content
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
This national program coordinates emergency responses to sick, injured, distressed, or dead marine mammals.
National
The Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program coordinates emergency responses to sick, injured, distressed, or dead seals, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises, and whales. The 1992 Amendments to the
Marine Mammal Protection Act
formalized this program and designated NOAA Fisheries' Office of Protected Resources as the lead agency to coordinate related activities. The program focuses on four primary areas:
Stranding and entanglement networks.
Unusual mortality event response.
Biosurveillance and baseline health research.
John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program
Stranding and Entanglement Response Networks
Image
The MMHSRP works with volunteer
stranding
and
entanglement networks
as well as local, tribal, state, and federal government agencies to coordinate and conduct emergency responses to stranded or entangled marine mammals. The Program provides network members with a
Stranding Agreement
from the NOAA Fisheries regional offices to ensure that all activities performed are safe for both responders and animals. The network members provide staff and local response capabilities, independently raising funds to cover the majority of their costs. The stranding and entanglement networks also perform a valuable biosurveillance role, as they are often the first to detect threats to marine mammal populations. To that end, stranding networks provide data to the MMHSRP through
Level A Data Collection
, which is stored in the
National Stranding Database
.
Unusual Mortality Event Response
Image
While marine mammal strandings occur frequently, there are some cases where an unusually high number of live or dead animals may come ashore over a relatively short time span in the same geographic area. These
Unusual Mortality Events
can be a result of events such as a disease outbreak, environmental factors, or oil spills.
The MMHSRP coordinates the
Working Group on Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Events
, which leads the response and investigation into the causes of the UME.
You can contribute to the
Unusual Mortality Event Fund
,
which helps fund our stranding networks’ response to, and investigation of, these events.
Biosurveillance and Baseline Health Research
Biosurveillance and baseline health research on marine mammals are important components of the program. While not “emergency response,” these studies provide context during a health emergency and may help predict when and where events may occur in the future. An important aspect of this program is the
National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank
, which provides protocols and techniques for the long-term storage of samples from marine mammals that can be used as baseline health comparisons for retrospective analyses.
John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program
The
Prescott Grant Program
provides funding for members of the national marine mammal stranding network through a competitive grant process.
From 2001 through 2023, the Program awarded more than $75.4 million in funding through 893 competitive grants to Stranding Network members in 26 states, the District of Columbia, two territories, and three tribes.
These grants support the rescue and
rehabilitation
of stranded marine mammals, data collection from living or dead stranded marine mammals for health research, and facility operating costs.
Regional Programs
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
More Information
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Reports
Marine Mammal Protection Act Policies, Guidance, and Regulations
Final
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (2022)
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement on the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
(2009)
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program: Program Development Plan
(1994)
Marine Mammal Rehabilitation
Understanding Marine Mammal Euthanasia
Displaced Dolphins: Post-hurricane Response
Do Not Move Stranded Whales, Dolphins, or Porpoises
More Information
Report a Stranded Marine Mammal
Report an Entangled Marine Mammal
National Marine Mammal Stranding Response Network
National Marine Mammal Entanglement Response Networks
Unusual Mortality Event Program
Prescott Grant Program
Frequent Questions: Necropsies (Animal Autopsies) of Marine Mammals
Contact the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
Recent News
Feature Story
Celebrating Earth Day with NOAA Fisheries
Feature Story
,
National
National
Feature Story
Nominate an Outstanding Steward in Marine, Coastal, or Riverine Habitat Conservation
Feature Story
,
National
National
Leadership Message
50 Years of Innovation and Leadership: Celebrating the Magnuson-Stevens Act
Leadership Message
,
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
International
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
International
More News
Last updated by
Office of Protected Resources
on August 07, 2025
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
Unusual Mortality Event
Prescott Grant Program
Marine Mammal Strandings