Dissections of turtles found stranded ashore showed that more than half had consumed plastic and other waste produced by humans, while most were found on the coasts of southern and eastern Taiwan, the Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) said in a report on Friday.
Established in April last year as part of the Ocean Affairs Council, the OCA in April released the first of its quarterly reports on strandings of cetaceans and sea turtles.
Mass strandings of cetaceans have been reported around the globe this year, the agency said, citing reports that more than 260 dolphins have beached along the northern Gulf of Mexico since February.
Photo copied by Hung Ting-hung, Taipei Times
In the second quarter, the agency received reports of 71 stranded turtles — 24 more than the average reported in the same period for the previous three years, the report showed.
Green sea turtles remain the primary species found, with 65 rescued from April to June, it said.
The turtles were rescued mainly on beaches in Taitung County, Pingtung County, New Taipei City and outlying Penghu County, it said.
Veterinarians have performed autopsies on 48 turtles, among which 26 were found to have consumed plastic debris, polystyrene foam or metal, the OCA said.
It called on people to reduce use of disposable plastic products to prevent more marine animals from consuming them.
In the second quarter, the OCA received reports of 50 stranded whales and dolphins, 40 of which were found dead, it said.
The beached animals included 13 pygmy killer whales — some of which were stranded in a group on the coast in Kaohsiung in April — 10 finless porpoises, seven bottlenose dolphins and five Fraser’s dolphins, it said.
The stranded cetaceans were found mainly on beaches in Kaohsiung, Taitung County and outlying Lienchiang County, the OCA said.
A pilot whale found in Kaohsiung in April was deaf — which is more than likely why it became stranded — and despite 31 days of treatment, it died, possibly because its internal organs were inflamed, it said.
The rising number of stranded animals might be because of increased attention on marine conservation, so there needs to be long-term observations to determine whether there is an upward trend, the agency said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the