By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

A dead dolphin was recovered off the coast of Negros Occidental’s Sagay City yesterday morning.

Resource Management Section head Jose Roberto Togle of the Sagay City Environment and Natural Resources (SCENRO) said the dolphin was recovered by a fisherman at the Carbin Reef, part of Sagay Marine Reserve, at 5:40 a.m.

Togle said they have yet to determine the cause of its death, but an initial examination of the remains revealed that the dolphin may have been hit by a hard object.

The marine mammal, a common bottlenose dolphin, is an adult male measuring 1.92 meters in length and 90 kilograms in weight.

Scratch marks on its left eye and nape, and soft tissue at the back of the head were also seen.

The dolphin was turned over to the Bantay Dagat Volunteers and SCENRO.

Togle also advised fisherfolk to immediately release stranded mammals trapped in their fishing nets as they play an important role in the marine ecosystem./DGB, WDJ