Dozens of dead stingrays found on Brazil beach
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
RIO DE JANEIRO - Dozens of dead stingrays appeared on a beach in Rio de Janeiro this week, sparking confusion and concern in the local community.
Fishermen reported the first sightings early on Tuesday. A woman who lives in the fishing village said she noticed the incident shortly after dawn and the dead stringrays prompted the arrival of vultures.
Fisherman Renato dos Reis Oliveira said: “This made us all sad. We’ve never seen the death of stingrays like this here.”
Biologist Ricardo Gomes from the Mar Urbano Institute noted that the absence of other dead species on the beach indicates the incident was likely not caused by pollutants or a lack of oxygen in the water.
“This makes the hypothesis of trawling more evident in the case of these stingrays,” he said.
Trawling is a fishing technique that involves pulling a net through the water behind one or more boats.
“This is not (the stingray’s natural) place, so this is strange even for the people who are here and who live off fishing,” said environmentalist Isabeli Delois.
“Something very bad happened,” she added. REUTERS
