By Leilanie G. Adriano
Staff reporter
Paoay,
Ilocos Norte—A risso’s dolphin (grampus
griseus) was found dead on the beach along a fishing barangay here in Paoay,
Ilocos Norte on Aug. 15. Initial findings reveal that the dolphin may have died
due to acoustic trauma and hunger.
In a report given to Arthur
Valente, provincial fisheries regulation officer of Ilocos Norte from the
Municipal Agriculture Office of Paoay town, the dolphin, which was beached
along Brgy. Bacsil here, was 3 meters long and weighed about 110 kilograms.
Barangay residents said the
dolphin was already dead when they found it on the shore.
“The dolphin is thin and
incurred several wounds in various parts of the body. Like other previous
cases, the dolphin may have died due to acoustic trauma and hunger,” Mr. Valente
theorized.
To validate his theory,
several samples were collected from the dolphin’s body for necropsy analysis
which will be released soon.
The dolphin, found on
decomposing stage was immediately buried.
Barely a week ago, a spinner
dolphin measuring 1.73 meters long and weighing 37 kilos was found dead along the
Pasuquin shoreline of the first district of Ilocos Norte.
Since January, this is now
the third time that a marine mammal was found dead in Ilocos Norte. Last May, a
dumped butchered whale was also found along the shoreline of Maglaoi Sur in
neighboring Currimao town. Overall, the Provincial Fishery Office under the
Ilocos Norte government recorded 11 marine animal strandings from January to
August.
Tagged as one of the hot
spots of marine animal stranding in the country, Ilocos Norte officials continue
to educate local fishermen about the importance of marine animals to maintain
balance ecology.
According to Mr. Valente,
marine animals get stranded when they flee fishermen hunting them or they get
sick as a result of polluted environments. They also get stranded when
they try to flee bad weather, dynamite fishing or get lost in their search for
food.
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