Dolphin Dies From Head Injuries at Brookfield Zoo

By Samantha Abernethy in News on Sep 6, 2011 4:00PM

A dolphin died at the Brookfield Zoo on Monday after a collision with another dolphin led to a fractured skull. Officials say it was a "freak accident" that killed Nea, a 4-year-old Atlantic bottlenose dolphin who arrived at Brookfield last year. The accident happened just before Nea was supposed to perform in the 1 p.m. dolphin show.

There's no sign of injury in the other dolphin, and no one saw the incident. Trainers heard a loud pop and noticed Nea was injured. They entered the water and attempted CPR, to no avail. Since there were no visible abrasions on her head, officials determined she must've struck something soft.

A zoo official told the Sun-Times that five of the seven dolphins at the zoo are younger. “They’re like a bunch of kids running around," he said. "We just think they happened to collide.”

Dolphin shows were canceled on Monday, but everything is back on schedule today.