Dead Dolphin found!!

[SirSquiglum]

Just been on the phone with a good friend of mine in waterford. He was out for a walk with the dog on Kilfarrasy beach in tramore today and said he came across a sight that made him feel sick and disgusted, He found a dead dolphin washed up on the shore, the head was cut off along with the fins, Had no phone to take a picture, but has contacted the Local Authorities on the matter. Whats the world coming when that kind of brutality is inflicted on such a magnificent creature!

Just said i would share what i heard..

All the best SQ............

[Creep]

Did anyone contact the Whale Dolphin Group about it?

If the animal was illegal shot in the head they normally take the skull (goes for seals as well ) and believe it of not there are plain skull collectors out there, the Whale & Dolphin Group do collect skulls of dead Dolphins for Museums & Marine Colleges to use. But they ALWAYS bury the carcas when they are done. so I know it wasnt them. as for the fins thats a new on me!!!

Contacts Page for them: http://www.iwdg.ie/content.asp?id=14

[stox 1]

Scumbags! This turns my stomach. Ego maniacs, aphrodisiac hunters or just plain scumbags, this needs to be investigated and the perpetrators named and shamed so we can all know them for it !

[corbyeire]

as soon as i heard fins i was thinking soup

wonder does it work the same a mamal fin versus a fish fin

crazy in this day and age - just like all the museums having to put out fake rhino heads as the horn is worth as much if not more than gold

[SirSquiglum]

Did anyone contact the Whale Dolphin Group about it?

If the animal was illegal shot in the head they normally take the skull (goes for seals as well ) and believe it of not there are plain skull collectors out there, the Whale & Dolphin Group do collect skulls of dead Dolphins for Museums & Marine Colleges to use. But they ALWAYS bury the carcas when they are done. so I know it wasnt them. as for the fins thats a new on me!!!

Contacts Page for them: http://www.iwdg.ie/content.asp?id=14

Tanx for the link Creep, I think he contacted them, but to be sure i sent him the link, along with a contact number for the iwdg.

[SirSquiglum]

as soon as i heard fins i was thinking soup

wonder does it work the same a mamal fin versus a fish fin

crazy in this day and age - just like all the museums having to put out fake rhino heads as the horn is worth as much if not more than gold

Hmm, didnt know that about the horn of the Rhino at all, learn something new everyday!

[twinkle]

this is the same story from the 24 feb the two seals and the dolphin. there was 19 dolphins washed up dead in march last year which baffled the boffins all in around waterford/cork.this story is just a local rag trying to sensationalize the shooting of the seals there was a dolphin washed up but i can assure you if it was shot, every paper and tv station would be down there and the headlines would be a dolphin and 2 seals with gunshot wounds.2 shot seals is not big news. but someone shooting fungi is.as the story developes youl find as it gets exaggerated by each person you will be told that they found traces of idiotic comments on the dolphins body my point being if a washed up dolphin makes national news what do you think a murdered one would make?

[beachbuddy]

Just been on the phone with a good friend of mine in waterford. He was out for a walk with the dog on Kilfarrasy beach in tramore today and said he came across a sight that made him feel sick and disgusted, He found a dead dolphin washed up on the shore, the head was cut off along with the fins, .........

I could be wrong but today is the 6th of march not 24 feb,unless its the same dolphin hacked to bits.Also heard on the news today that the gardai are now officially involved on this matter and on the seal front and are appealing to the public for information.

[Creep]

this is the same story from the 24 feb the two seals and the dolphin. there was 19 dolphins washed up dead in march last year which baffled the boffins all in around waterford/cork.this story is just a local rag trying to sensationalize the shooting of the seals there was a dolphin washed up but i can assure you if it was shot, every paper and tv station would be down there and the headlines would be a dolphin and 2 seals with gunshot wounds.2 shot seals is not big news. but someone shooting fungi is.as the story developes youl find as it gets exaggerated by each person you will be told that they found traces of human sperm on the dolphins body my point being if a washed up dolphin makes national news what do you think a murdered one would make?

Not exactly, Twinks, the stories of protected marine life stirs up something in people (never been able to figure it) Dead Porpoises, and dolphins wash in a lot yearly and various orgs try and keep them under wraps, 1st is when your doing studies or research how the animal died the last thing you want is a huge crowd gathering around, "what are you doing?, why you doing that, what bit is that?" though it is important for the public to make contact its a double edge sword. Remember when the Orca went into the Lee in Cork, everyone and its mother went there!!!
Also a point of illegal shot mammals to carry out an investagation, shells tracks etc.. its best if the officers are left to do the job rather then having media reps darting all around the place, yes the story has to be told but to get the best possible chance of nailin the culprets the scene must be examined first.

The dolphin (common dolphin, they are the ones with a figure 8 shape on thier sides brown and cream colour) had sustain a head injury .... report didnt go any further into details (the one that was found with the seals)
By the way head injury could mean ANYTHING, i.e. collision with a speeding boat, to someone hitting it over the head,,

the one reported by SirSquiglum friend was kinda missing a head ..and minus fins

[SirSquiglum]

I doubt its the same related incident as the one that was being discussed a couple of days ago, as this was only yesterday on a beach in tramore, and for watever reason it was left in that state on the beach should make local news IMO, god only knows how many incidents there is like this across the country unreported!!

[twinkle]

first place id try is the local taxidermis. id say some one found it dead and fancied a wall piece.i remember a guy cutting the shell off a giant turtle washed up at tom haggards in wexford back in the 70s.i would also like to add dolphins above all marine species are revered by fishermen and sailors alike. it would be seen as an act of extreme evil and bad karma to be involved in the death of this beautiful creature.it has been that way since man took to the seas.

[Aurelien]

Doubt the head has ended in a taxidermy workshop ... A job like this is very special and difficult, would cost more money than most of us can afford and the result wouldn't be super nice looking ... Cheaper to get a resin reproduction ...

The skull collector is more probable as parts of some animals can reach crazy prices on the collectors/traditional medecine market.

But why the fin in that case? never heard about dolphin fins soup ...

Could it be that this animal has been tangled in a net and the best way to not damage the net was cut his head and some of his fins ... A damaged net can cost a lot of money to fisherman ...

The head would sink to the bottom and the body with air inside would be carried by currents until washed ...

I would say if the body parts have been taken after finding the animal dead on the beach, this looks shocking but it is not something unusual. Lots of people cut foxes tails when they find them at the side of the road or take deer heads, dead birds ...

But if it has been killed intentionally for whatever reasons, this is just disgusting ... Some sick people out there ...

[twinkle]

Could it be that this animal has been tangled in a net and the best way to not damage the net was cut his head and some of his fins ... A damaged net can cost a lot of money this seems more like the answer to the puzzle .but would the rest of the torso not have net marks?as fish twist them selves in the net when caught

[SirSquiglum]

In fairness, that would make the most sense about the dolphin getting tangled up in a net, and rather than ruin the net, the other extreme was done, but was there net marks on the dolphins body, dont know as i didnt have the chance to view it with my own eyes (Kinda glad i didnt see it to be honest) but i can drop a call and ask Keith who found it, but i doubt he would notice something like that, and in this case, prob was just in shock at finding the dolphin like that!

[Creep]

Nets would leave marks on the body, triangle shapes all over (normally up around the dorsal) not deep but would be noticable, especially after death As for cutting skulls off, I've had to do this several times for various different orgs, through a licenced permit held by the Orgs, it is in no way easy or nice, the smell is over powering. and a good sharp knife will do the job, BUT cutting through the neck bone is easier with other tools which Im not going to discuss here.
But Ive seen something similar with seals having thier heads cut off. In most cases it was done to hide evidence. but none the less when you bring your family to the beach and come across something as gruesome as that and trying to explain to a child regardless of animal its just not on!

[Aurelien]

Yes this would be a very messy, stinky and difficult job, involving more than one person if you have to do it with a knife and wants to it as quickly as possible and the person holding the knife needs a bit of skills as well to go through the verterae joint with a simple knife ...

If you're alone you would need a different tool (not the kind you're carrying with you for a walk on the beach) and lots of stamina to come back to the car with such a heavy head ...

Doing it on the beach would involved that anybody can see you, not very nice to be seen cuting a dolphin head.

As for net marks, it would depends how long it has been in the net, how badly tangled it was and how long it has spent in the water before being washed on the beach.

More than one person, a few sharp tools, far from the public eyes ... hmmmm everything you can find on a fishing boat ...

Tangled in a net and cut to pieces to save the net is still, on my opinion, the best explanations.

[SirSquiglum]

Got a picture of the dolphin after all guys, went bk down with his camera and got one!!
Sorry if this offends anyone, the picture is not a pretty sight in fairness, apologies!

[twinkle]

strange indeed.it looks like the head was pulled off i would expect to see knife marks or straight edges made by a blade or maybe its just that the crabs have had a go of it. sad picture

[SirSquiglum]

strange indeed.it looks like the head was pulled off i would expect to see knife marks or straight edges made by a blade or maybe its just that the crabs have had a go of it. sad picture

Not sure Twinkle, but it is very sad indeed!!!

[Conger]

Maybe completely wrong on this but have looked at the picture a couple of times and it seems to me (just my own opinion) like maybe an attack from a shark or some other see creature, the head does look like it was torn off and i would expect a cleaner cut on the fin if this was done with a knife, i know there is no damage to the flank of the dolphin but or could it be a possible run in with a boat engine as i said just my own couple of observations. If this was a deliberate attack there is no condoning it as Dolphins are a magnificent creature, have had them come in very close up around Fanore (there is a resident dolphin in the area) with a calf, great to see