About 2,000 Magellanic penguin carcasses have washed up on Uruguay’s shores. Environmentalists cite overfishing as a possible cause. The young penguins therefore had no fat reserves and empty stomachs.
Around 2,000 dead penguins have been found on the east coast of Uruguay in the past few days. Environment Ministry Commissioner Carmen Leizagoyen told AFP that 90 percent of the penguins were young Magellanic penguins that died in the Atlantic and were washed up on beaches in Canelones, Maldonado and Rocha counties.
The young penguins therefore had no fat reserves and empty stomachs. The causes of the mass deaths were initially unclear. The bird flu virus was not detected in any of the cadavers, Leizagoyen emphasized.
The authorities have registered about 2,000 washed up penguins so far.
Penguin deaths also in 2022 off Brazil
Magellanic penguins nest in southern Argentina. In the southern hemisphere winter, they migrate north in search of food and cooler waters, then settling in Uruguay’s neighboring country of Brazil. “It’s normal for a certain percentage to die, but not such numbers,” Leizagoyen said.
According to her, a similar death of penguins was found in Brazil last year. The reasons are still unknown there. According to environmentalists, penguins are increasingly suffering from overfishing of the seas. Richard Tesore of the organization SOS Rescate Fauna Marina also pointed to a storm in the Atlantic in mid-July that may have killed many vulnerable animals.
Environmentalists: dire situation in the Southwest Atlantic
In addition to penguins, dead seabirds, sea turtles and sea lions have washed up on Maldonado’s beaches in recent days, according to Tesore. The head of the environmental organization Ambiente de Rocha, Rodrigo García, called for the establishment of marine protected areas.
“The penguin shows us the tip of the iceberg of a dire situation that the entire southwest Atlantic is experiencing because of illegal, unregistered, unregulated fishing,” he explained.