ThaiWhales / AFP - Getty ImagesThe Whale likely thought the bags were food
The alarming state of pollution in our oceans has been highlighted yet again, after a pilot whale died from starvation on Friday, having ingested 80-plastic bags, weighing roughly 17-pounds.
It became beached in a canal near Songkhla, a city in southern Thailand on Monday before last.
Upon discovering the Whale, the Marine and Coastal Resources Department (MCRD) began efforts to save the whale and remove the plastic it had ingested.
However it was only able to spit out 5-bags and sadly passed away.
During an autopsy after the whale's death, the MCRD found 80-plastic bags lodged in its stomach.
Given Pilot Whales eat squid, octopus and small fish, the whale likely thought the floating plastic bags were food.
The continued build up of plastic bags clogged up the whale's digestive tract and ultimately caused the whale to starve to death.
The bags removed from the Whale's stomach.Source: ThaiWhales / AFP - Getty ImagesWorrying predictions
Thailand is considered one of the worst countries in the world for dumping plastic into the ocean, dumping roughly 1 million tons of plastic into the sea.
Worrying predictions have stated that if plastic production continues on trend, there will soon be more plastic by weight in the ocean than fish.
Approximately 95% of the plastic produced is single-use, meaning it is thrown away after use and never recycled.
