Surfers from the United States visiting Costa Rica rescued a dolphin calf that had become stranded on the beach and separated from its mother.

The rescue was witnessed by a shaper from Wooster Surfboards Costa Rica, and it was also captured on video and posted to the Facebook Timeline of the National Surfing Federation. The surfers self-identified with the nickname “Team Gringo.”

The juvenile dolphin apparently got separated from its pod and got caught in the powerful surf that has prevailed for more than a week on the popular breaks along the Central Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The calf ended up stranded on the sand of Playa Hermosa, not far from Jaco Beach.

The surfers arrived at the Playa Hermosa during low tide, and they noticed that the dolphin appeared to be breathing but unable to move on its own and completely dry under the sun. Fearing extreme dehydration, the surfers grabbed the young cetacean by its fluke (tail fin) and carried it to the water. It is important to note that marine biologists recommend lifting and pushing stranded cetaceans whenever possible as grabbing them from their tail fins could result in injury.

Upon being immersed in shallow water, the dolphin became animated but started swimming erratically towards its rescuers ashore instead of heading out to sea. The shore break conditions did not help the young mammal, which rolled back on the beach a couple of times.

Eventually, the surfers executed a power drag maneuver and placed the dolphin on a receding wave with its eyes and ear canals pointed towards open water. This time, the dolphin found its swim rhythm, jumped over a crest and swam away from Playa Hermosa.

Should the rescued dolphin fail to reunite with its mother, it will likely be taken in by another pod given the gregarious nature of this marine species.

This is hardly the first time surfers in Costa Rica have rescued creatures in peril. As reported by The Costa Rica Star in April, local surfers rescued a baby pilot whale in Boca Barranca, Puntarenas. In June of last year, surfers in the Caribbean coast amazingly rescued a deer that decided to go for a dangerous swim in the Salsa Brava point break.