A dead seven foot male dolphin was washed ashore on Fort Meyers Beach in Big Carlos Pass on Friday last week, announced by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The said dolphin was found a week earlier before the announcement. Necropsy reports show that a two-foot plastic shower hose was found inside the animal’s stomach.
“Your actions can make a difference – secure and properly dispose of trash, take part in coastal cleanups and share information on how to reduce marine debris with others,” FWC shared on a Facebook post.
FWC still waits for the samples collected from the dolphin to determine the exact cause of the death of the animal.
This incident serves as the second stranded dolphin reported to be found in the area with its belly full of plastic and wastes in just a month.
Just last month, a baby female rough-toothed dolphin was found in poor health and biologists had no choice but to “humanely euthanize” it. Necropsy reports show that it had a piece of balloon and two plastic bags in its stomach.
On the same day in April 23, a young sperm whale was found in Italy with several kilograms of plastic in its stomach.
The government is currently taking some steps in an effort to lessen the plastic in the city. Hawaii is known as the first US state to ban plastic bags in all counties back in 2015. California and New York followed with the implementation of a statewide plastic ban, with the latter’s ban goes into effect next March.
England has also announced banning plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds from April 2020.
Related stories:
– Whales die at an alarming rate
– Iceland plans to kill 2,000 whales over the next five years
– Three whale species added to Canada’s threatened animals
