Dead dolphin found on Krabi beach with wound on body
In a sad development for Thailand’s wildlife lovers, a dead dolphin was found washed up on a beach in Thailand’s Krabi province, with a wound on its body.
The lifeless body of the dolphin was discovered on the island of Koh Sri Boya in the Nuea Khlong district yesterday morning. A village headman told the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) that the dolphin had washed up on the shores of Lang Koh Beach.
The dolphin measured approximately 1.5 metres in length, and weighed around 100 kilograms, The Phuket Express reported. A photo shows a wound on the dolphin’s tail.
To determine the precise cause of death, the deceased dolphin was transported to the Tang Office of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources for a thorough autopsy.
Tragically, this is not the first incident this year of a dead dolphin washing up on a beach in Thailand.
On March 9, a dead dolphin was found washed ashore on Thailand’s island of Koh Samui. The unfortunate discovery was made at Hua Thanon Beach in the Maret sub-district on the southeastern side of the island.
Last year, Phuket witnessed a similar tragedy. A striped dolphin died after beaching itself in Patong despite local rescuers’ best efforts. The dolphin was found after having washed up on shore with a serious injury. The dolphin had sustained severe wounds on the lower section of its tail fin.
Thailand struggles to protect dolphins from environmental threats caused by human activities.
In Songkhla Lake, there are as few as 14 Irrawaddy dolphins. The situation is so serious that the World Bank has become involved.
In February this year, global dolphin experts recently met with local agencies at the World Bank office in Bangkok to come up with better ways to make sure the dolphins survive, and even flourish.
The largest-ever convention of dolphin experts included the World Bank, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and groups from India, Cambodia and Laos.
