500 Dead Sea Lions Found On Coast Of Peru

On the coast of Ancash, Peru, authorities have found the bodies of 500 dead sea lions. According to the Peruvian Tourism and Environment Police, the cause of the death of the sea lions is most likely poisoning by fisherman.

The lieutenant governor of Peru's Samanco district filed an official complaint about fishermen poisoning sea lions, reports the Andina news agency. The government executed a clean-up operation to remove the bodies from beaches and transport them to the municipal dump. The bodies, which were everything in between pups and adults, were decomposing on the beaches.

While death by poison is believed to be cause, city officials and prosecutors have revealed there would be an official investigation. This is not the first time Peru has had to deal with animal bodies on a beach, as earlier this month the Piura region had 200 sea lions, dolphins, turtles and pelicans washed ashore, according to the BBC.