Our plastic addiction is choking the oceans: Sperm whale found dead with 29 kgs of plastic in its stomach
A sperm whale was found dead after it had swallowed around 29 kilograms of plastic. It was killed by a gastric shock to its stomach and intestines due to the debris.
A sperm whale was found dead after it had swallowed around 29 kilograms of plastic. It was killed by a gastric shock to its stomach and intestines due to the debris. | Photo Credit: Indiatimes, Representative Image
Perhaps, unaware of the fact that humankind has been increasingly using the oceans as a garbage dump, innocent sea creatures increasingly ingest plastic and other such debris. In recent news, a sperm whale was found dead, after it had swallowed around 64 pounds of plastic debris. That’s approximately 29 kilograms of plastic in the whale’s stomach. Indiatimes reports that the male sperm whale washed ashore on the Murcian coast in southern Spain in late February. The cause of death was investigated by the El Valle Wildlife Rescue Centre and they finally determined that the whale’s death was due to the huge amount of plastic in its body.
It was killed by a gastric shock to its stomach and intestines due to the debris, reports the news website. Likely because it was unable to digest or expel the plastic from its system, the inner walls of the whale’s body were inflamed because of a fungal infection. Following the sea creature’s death, the Murcia government kick-started a campaign to stop the dumping of waste in the waters. The campaign has been followed up by educating and awareness of the issue.
The Versova beach in Mumbai recently witnessed a rare activity on as around 80 Olive Ridley turtles were seen hatching here for the first time in two decades. The turtle hatchlings were first seen by environment activist and beach clean-up crusader Afroz Shah and his team around 9.30 in morning. This is proof that there is still hope for our oceans if we come together - the Versova beach cleanup is proof that one human being with a mission can truly create a movement.
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