France: the ocean has already dumped 1100 dead dolphins this year!

Since January, the ocean has already dumped 1,100 dead dolphins on the French coast, reports the US Associated Press – AP news agency. A similar situation in France has never happened before. Commercial fishing has been pointed to as the cause of this.

According to scientists, 90% of dolphin deaths are caused by accidental entanglement in commercial fishing nets. However, the scale of the phenomenon this year remains mysterious.

-- Advertisement --

[blockquote style=”2″]”In just three months we have already broken last year’s record, higher than the one in 2017, which was already then the highest in 40 years!” – said Willy Daubin of the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)[/blockquote].

Many of the dolphins found on the shore were mutilated and had their fins cut off. This is allegedly the practice fishermen use on strangled mammals to prevent them from damaging their nets.

French Minister for Ecological Transition Francois de Rugy went to the CNRS centre in La Rochelle to get an idea of the situation and to counteract the escalation of the problem. The government representative announced, among other things, the extension and intensification of research into acoustic dolphin-scaring devices, which 26 fishing vessels in the Bay of Biscay already have.

Representatives of Sea Shepheard have spoken out on this issue, saying that the government’s action is pointless and will not solve the problem. They are also accusing fishermen of not turning on their dolphin-scaring devices for fear of frightening the target fish, which is why there are so many dead dolphins on the French coast.

Sea Shepherd also does not believe that scaling up the use of acoustic devices is a good thing, as for creatures susceptible to their influence, the ocean will simply become too noisy, seriously affecting their existing existence.

What is certain is that a solution to the problem is needed immediately. Otherwise, industrial fishing will very quickly lead to the extinction of dolphins.

Source: Associated Press
Photo: Cecile Dars, Observatoire Pelagis/CNRS/Universite de la Rochelle