‘It could have hit against a rock in the rough sea condition’

Rameswaram

The carcass of a 20-year-old female dolphin was washed ashore at Dhanushkodi near here on Tuesday.

Mandapam Forest Range Officer S. Sathish, who examined the carcass, said the mammal had head injuries and it could have died two or three days ago. The sea was rough for the last two days following gusty winds in the area and the dolphin could have accidentally hit against a rock, he said.

After post-mortem, the carcass was buried at the seashore. The humpback dolphin, which was common in the Gulf of Mannar, weighed 250 kg. It measured 240 cm in length, 75 cm in breadth and 150 cm in circumference, he said.

This was the second dolphin carcass to be washed ashore in the area this year. On January 22, forest personnel found the decomposed carcass of an adult male dolphin at Agnitheertham seashore.

National Forest Day

Mr. Sathish said it was unfortunate that the carcass was found washed ashore on National Forest Day. The Mandapam range, however, celebrated the day by releasing 74 Olive Ridley turtle hatchlings, hatched in Dhanushkodi hatchery, into the sea, he said.

The range office had so far released 1,700 hatchlings after releasing the first batch of 83 hatchlings on February 3. The range office had so far made a record collection of 9,298 turtle eggs during this season, he added.