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A sperm whale was found dead with a 100-kilogram litter ball in its stomach.
Members of the Scottish Marine Animal Scheme were called to the Seilebost beach on Thursday after they found the dead animal.
After conducting a necropsy on the sperm whale, vets found fishing nets, ropes, packing straps, bags, and plastic bags compacted together.
It is still not clear what caused the whale to die.
Researchers have shared images on Facebook and have shared their concerns about marine pollution that is mainly caused by humans.
The group said, “In this whale’s stomach was approximately 100kg of marine debris – a whole range of plastic including sections of net, bundles of rope, plastic cups, bags, gloves, packing straps and tubing.”
They added, “All this material was in a huge ball in the stomach and some of it it looked like it had been there for some time. The animal wasn’t in particularly poor condition, and whilst it is certainly plausible that this amount of debris was a factor in its live stranding, we actually couldn’t find evidence that this had impacted or obstructed the intestines.”
They continued, “This amount of plastic in the stomach is nonetheless horrific, must have compromised digestion, and serves to demonstrate, yet again, the hazards that marine litter and lost or discarded fishing gear can cause to marine life.”
The group pointed out that the issue is caused by human activities.
It added, “It is also perhaps a good example that this is a global issue caused by a whole host of human activities. This whale had debris in its stomach which seemed to have originated from both the land and fishing sectors.”
Dan Parry, a resident near Luskentyre, said, “It was desperately sad, especially when you saw the fishing nets and debris that came out of its stomach.”
Dan added, “We walk on these beaches nearly every day and I always take a bag to pick up litter, most of which is fishing-related.”
He continued, “This stuff could have easily been netting or the like lost in a storm, we just don’t know, but it does show the scale of the problem we have with marine pollution.”
The debris is believed to have originated from the fishing industry and by the land.
The coastguard and workers from the Western Isles Council helped with the necropsy of the whale.
A giant hole has been dug up on the beach to bury the sub-adult male.
According to numbers, whale and dolphin stranding in Scotland are on the increase.
There were 204 stranding reports in 2009, and in 2018 there were 930.