Two more dead dolphins have been found dead on Kuakata beach in Patuakhali. At around 12:30 pm on Monday, two dolphins floated in the tide and got stuck on the beach at Sunset Point, west of the beach. One of the two floating dolphins is a humpback species and the other is a Irrawaddy species.
The dead dolphins, about six to seven feet long, had twisted nets on their lips and were bleeding.
Witnesses said members of a voluntary organization that came to clean up Kuakata beach litter on Monday afternoon went to the beach and found two dead dolphins.
The dolphins were twisted into two nets. These sea mammals might got trapped in fishing nets as they ascend to the upper part of the ocean to breathe from the deep sea. So the fishermen have cut the nets and released the two dolphins in the sea.
On August 6, another dead dolphin of the humpback species floated on the beach. Three dolphins, including two that floated today, were buried on the beach without an autopsy, leaving the cause of death unknown.
Earlier, several dead dolphins, whales and endangered species of tortoises floated on Kuakata beach. However, the exact cause of death was never known. According to fisheries researchers, two species of dolphins are commonly found in the Bay of Bengal adjacent to Kuakata. One is the bottle nose and the other is the humpback dolphin. The two dead dolphins that floated on Kuakata beach on Monday were humpback dolphins and Irrawaddy. The abundance of this species of dolphin can be noticed in the shallow areas of the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. Its back is slightly elevated, so it is called a humpback dolphin. Its front jaw is quite long and has 30-34 teeth. Irrawaddy dolphins are found mainly in the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar.
Kalapara Upazila Fisheries Officer Apu Saha said hunting and selling dolphins is a criminal offense. They are also wondering why so many dead dolphins are floating in Kuakata. The matter has been reported to the district fisheries officer. Work on the cause of the dolphin's death will begin soon.
Sagarika Sriti, an assistant researcher at the EcoFISH-2 project working on biodiversity in Kuakata, Patuakhali, said dolphins play an important role in the marine ecosystem in protecting marine biodiversity. The cause of the dolphin's death needs to be investigated now, he said.
