For the first time in almost 20 years a killer whale washed up on an English beach with a stomach full of plastic. The carcass was discovered on a salt marsh on the eastern coast of the country.
According to The Independent, the Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP) said that large pieces of plastic were found inside the orca. CSIP is certain, however, that this was not the cause of death.
The Zoological Society of London explained that this stranding of the young killer whale is the first stranding to occur in 20 years, in both England and Wales.
In a social media post, CSIP said: ‘We found no evidence of recent feeding, with largely empty stomachs and intestinal tract; we did find a large fragment of plastic material in the first stomach, but we considered this to be an incidental finding and not a causal factor in the animals death, as it hadn’t caused an impaction. Although there was some evidence of potential live stranding (and anecdotal reports were received of a live stranded killer whale in the Wash at the end of 2019), given the condition of the body, it’s unfortunately unlikely that we’ll ever be able to conclusively establish a cause of death.’
Interesting day out yesterday, examination of a fragrant juvenile male killer whale in the Wash- difficult terrain and access issues. First we’ve examined in England for nearly 20 years, more to follow next week. Huge thanks to @APCbirding RAF Holbeach and @MCA_media #CSIoftheSea pic.twitter.com/6MWw712oQz
— Rob Deaville (@strandings_man) January 11, 2020
Image: Facebook
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