This scary story took place in the Philippines on Monday 18th March. A whale was found dead after washing up on the beach near the municipality of Mabini in the centre of the country. The animal died an agonising death, coughing up blood and incapable of eating. This was due to 40kg of plastic that had built up in its stomach.
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These mind-blowing photos were published on Twitter by a local worker.
An agonising death
Experts at the Museum of Natural History in Davao carried out an autopsy on the animal. In its stomach, they discovered shopping bags, rice packaging and other countless bits of plastic rubbish that were obstructing the organs of the 4-metre-long whale.
The whale first appeared on 15th March, but local authorities and fisherman managed to keep it afloat. However, the whale ended up on the shore.
‘It could not swim on its own, emaciated and weak. The animal was dehydrated. On the second day it struggled and vomited blood,’ explained the regional bureau director. The poor whale was already in a lot of pain.
Plastic kills
The Philippines are accused by environment activists of being one of the largest contributors to sea pollution. In this country, using disposable plastic products is very common. This type of pollution is also very frequent in South-East Asia and causes the death of whales, turtles and other wild species that live in this area of the world. The legislation on rubbish, however strict in the Philippines, doesn’t really seem to be enforced.
