I am perplexed..and I can't Help but wonder? Why?

Asked By: Ferric67 36-40, M 1 year ago

Are there 877 beached Dolphins in Peru?
What has been ruled out thus far:
Lack of food, Interaction with fisheries, Pesticide poisoning, Biotoxin poisoning and contamination from heavy metals.
So, what drove them to their deaths?
Mind you, this is the third beaching of Dolphins within two months worldwide. The other two being Boston (United States) and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)

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Posted by BabzEsq24 1 Apr 28th, 2012 at 8:20AM

These beaching happen nearly every year. This year warmer weather and avoiding new prey due to the warmer water and becoming confused with the geography are suspects

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2 Answers to "I am perplexed..and I can't Help but wonder? Why?"

Posted by Southpaugh Apr 28th, 2012 at 7:54PM

First we have no good long range historical data regarding Dolphins or Whales beaching themselves, meaning we don't what 'normal' is.

Secondly, we are most definitely changing the environment in ways we cannot accurately measure because of: a) the thousands of pollutants we have been introducing into the oceans for more than 100 years; and b) the unknown effects of combining such chemical, thermal, and even sonic sources of pollution into the seas.

Thirdly, ethology (the study of the behavior of animals) really has no idea of what might constitute 'happiness' or 'contentment' among cetaceans (whales & dolphins), which are highly intelligent. Are there psychological conditions that make life unlivable for these creatures? We simply don't know.

Forth, what proportion of the total population of cetaceans is being affected by this phenomenon? If it's tiny, then it may fall into mathematical insignificance--although emotionally significant for us humans.

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