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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials said Tuesday that they would not be devising a rescue plan for the remaining dolphins over-wintering in the Shrewsbury River, but would continue to monitor and “protect” the wild animals.

The seminar, held at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, was NOAA’s second public meeting regarding the bottle-nosed dolphins, following the Dec. 17 phone forum. Judging by a mixed audience, the meeting was seemingly more of the same report from the only agency possessing any power to save the creatures.

Of the original 16 bottle-nosed dolphins that formerly frolicked in the Navesink River during the summer, NOAA officials reported that only five are currently being tracked.

Eight are unaccounted for, officials said, and three were reported dead, including the pregnant female found last Christmas. Of the recorded dead mammals, all three were females.

Officials said only one cause of death could be determined, which was that of the first, a female juvenile dolphin: fungal pneumonia.

Other causes of death remain unknown and undetermined, respectively, as the carcass of a second female juvenile was too decomposed to tell, officials explained.

Trevor Spradin, from the National Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Team, said the most recent sighting of the five live dolphins was Tuesday, Jan. 13, in the Shrewsbury River, south of the Highlands Route 36 Bridge.

Previously, the abbreviated pod was officially seen during the first week of January, also near the bridge, Spradin said.

Additionally, Spradin detailed “unofficial spottings,” reported by residents and currently being confirmed by NOAA.

He said the same five dolphins were seen on Jan. 10 in the 500-yard buffer zone around the Highlands Bridge. Spradin said the state Department of Transportation made an agreement that it would cease construction activity if dolphins were spotted within the buffer zone.

Two of the five dolphins crossed under the bridge that day and went into the Sandy Hook Bay, according to locals. However, Spradin said the dolphins were later seen crossing back into the Shrewsbury River.

The two adventuresome ones were believed to be sub-adults, but officials would not confirm their age.

Spradin explained that the five remaining dolphins were being tracked through extensive photo identification, including dorsal fin differentiation, as well as overall body shots and natural marks, such as scars or barnacles. All 16 of the dolphins were initially assigned a number by NOAA.

The Shrewsbury pod was classified in the “coastal migratory stock,” according to officials, and there are more than 20 species of prey it could feed on.

Dr. Aleta Hohn, of NOAA’s Southeast Fisheries Science Center, said the pod had been actively feeding on menhaden, a fish whose population increased significantly in the area since 1985.

When the menhaden migrated, officials said they expected the pod would leave, following its food source. Instead, the dolphins moved on to another species, which officials guessed is a specie of silver fish.

As the area’s lead organization, NOAA officials said it was in everyone’s best interest that there was no interference with the wild creatures until a stranding occurred.

Despite ardent criticism that it was merely “watching the dolphins die,” NOAA officials claimed they were doing everything in their power to protect the dolphins in their natural surroundings.

Officials said there were stranding procedures in place, but no measures were prepared if the Shrewsbury or Navesink rivers froze over.

Temperatures are expected to drop to 8 degrees Fahrenheit this weekend.