Two dolphins were found washed ashore on consecutive days along the Bandra coast. The first on Wednesday, at Chimbai, was buried soon, the second was reported stuck in rocks at Bandstand on Thursday and was taken for postmortem.
"We received a phone call on Thursday morning from BMC officials about a dolphin that was spotted floating amid the rocks after which our staff retrieved the carcass. Since it had not decomposed too much we decided to send it for postmortem at Bombay Veterinary College, Parel," said Prashant Deshmukh, Range Forest Officer (RFO), Mangrove Cell. He said the postmortem would likely be done on Friday and might give a clue to the reason behind the death.
The carcass seemed to be two days old, he said. Marine experts said they hoped the postmortem would give some information about the cause of death. "Only two or three times before have we been able to get postmortem done — as most carcasses are found completely decomposed — and the results showed respiratory issues," Deshmukh said. After the postmortem, the carcass would be buried at a secluded location, just like the one found at Chimbai on Tuesday.
"These marine mammals are known to die due to different reasons — from natural causes to being hit by a propeller of a ship or being stuck in the nets, apart from other indirect reasons," said a marine biologist.
'DOCUMENTATION KEY'
Pradip Patade, cofounder of Marine Life Of Mumbai, said the carcasses are beached due to heavy sea current and winds during this season. 'It's important to document every such carcass washed ashore as a long-term study will be key to understanding these deaths,' he said.
