THE recent stranding and subsequent death of what was probably a long snouted spinner dolphin, at Shek O beach, raises a number of important issues.
First, can the Agriculture and Fisheries Department (AFD) explain why the carcass was so promptly incinerated, without an autopsy and without consultation with the Swire Marine Lab, World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong or the Marine Conservation Society? I understand that prior to disposal, the department had not made a positive identification on the animal, preferring to rely on photographs and field notes.
Second, with such a dislocation of management between the AFD, the Urban Services Department and the various cetacean-orientated groups, it is now time to co-ordinate the whole of Hong Kong's dolphin and porpoise interests.
This must include educating both the public and the lifeguard service that basic care can be given when a dolphin becomes stress disorientated or stranded.
Dolphins, porpoises and whales are all air-breathing mammals.
Their physiology and sociology are not unlike that of human beings. They suffer, like us, from the effects of pollution and habitat destruction.
