Scientists have discovered 29 kilos of plastic in the stomach of a sperm whale, which washed up on the southern coast of Spain in February.
During an autopsy of the 10-metre-long male whale, experts from the El Valle Wildlife Recovery Center uncovered plastic bags, a jerry can, and several pieces of rope and net.
After full examination, the experts agreed that the sperm whale had died because it could not expel the plastic it had swallowed.
They theorised that the blockage in the whale’s digestive system caused an infection of the abdomen, called peritonitis, that ultimately resulted in the mammal’s death.
As shocking as the discovery is, it’s really not. When over 8 million tons of plastic enter the world’s oceans every year, it’s no coincidence that 29 kilos of it show up in the stomach of a sperm whale.