Green sea turtle, whales found lifeless on Bicol shores

ALBAY, Philippines – A green sea turtle, a pgymy sperm whale, and a short-finned pilot whale were found dead in 3 different shorelines in the provinces of Albay, Camarines Sur, and Masbate in recent days. 

On Wednesday, August 21, a 15-year-old green sea turtle measuring 3 feet 21 inches and weighing 30 kilos was found dead on the shoreline of Barangay Calayucay in Sto Domingo, Albay. 

The green female sea turtle was seen lifeless with a piece of fishnet gyrating her neck. The carcass was later buried along the shoreline of Barangay Calayucay with the supervision of Tinoy Balingbing from Sto. Domingo’s Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office. 

Balingbing warned people that slaughtering a sea turtle, even a dead one, is strictly prohibited.

“Any person caught slaughtering even [a] dead turtle is strictly prohibited and will be imprisoned for 25 years and will be fined of P200,000 including catching and holding of endangered marine sea turtle,” Balingbing said.

On Thursday morning, August 22, a female pgymy sperm whale was found dead along the coast of Barangay Pasal in Del Gallego, Camarines Sur, according to Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources regional spokesperson Nonie Enolva.

“A pygmy sperm whale (Kogia breviceps) measuring 2.23 meters was ‘heavily emaciated’ and eventually died at 11 am this Thursday at Pasay village in Del Gallego, Camarines Sur,” she said.

The carcass was buried on-site by local residents. This was the third reported case of a stranded  female pygmy sperm whale in Del Gallego since 2013.

Meanwhile, in Batuan, Masbate, a short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) was found dead on Wednesday morning. It had wounds on its dorsal fins.

It will be recalled that in July, a giant leatherback sea turtle was also found dead in Camarines Sur, while earlier this month, a juvenile whale shark or butanding died after it was stranded on the shoreline in Masbate. – Rappler.com