A dead sperm whale has washed ashore on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi with nearly 6kg of plastic waste in its stomach.
The whale was discovered by locals in the Wakatobi Islands - a marine national park, hugely popular with divers for its pristine waters, marine diversity and huge barrier reef.
The rotting carcass of the 9.5m (31ft) mammal was found on the island of Kapota by locals on Monday.
Following an autopsy, experts found 5.9kg of plastic waste in its stomach - including plastic cups, bottles, bags, flip flops and over 1,000 other assorted pieces of plastic.
Penemuan ini diungkapkan oleh investigasi bersama DKP Wakatobi, Balai Taman Nasional Wakatobi, Badan Promosi Pariwisata Daerah, Akademi Kelautan dan Perikanan Wakatobi, WWF, bersama masyarakat setempat. pic.twitter.com/XCF7EzKaBC
— WWF-Indonesia (@WWF_ID) November 19, 2018
Dwi Suprapti, a marine species conservation coordinator at WWF Indonesia told the Associated Press that although experts were unable to determine the exact cause of death, "the facts that we see are truly awful."
She said experts could not say for certain that the plastic had caused the death because of the advanced state of decay of the carcass.
5,9 kg sampah plastik ditemukan di dlm perut paus malang ini! Sampah plastik yaitu: plastik keras (19 pcs, 140 gr), botol plastik (4 pcs, 150 gr), kantong plastik (25 pcs, 260 gr), sandal jepit (2 pcs, 270 gr), didominasi o/ tali rafia (3,26 kg) & gelas plastik (115 pcs, 750 gr). pic.twitter.com/ZFWZgkbnzu
— WWF-Indonesia (@WWF_ID) November 19, 2018
A recent environmental report found that Indonesia is the second largest plastic polluter in the world, behind China.
The Indonesian Government has pledged to cut the country's use of plastic by 70% by 2025.
Sobat, seekor Paus Sperma (Physeter macrocephalus) terdampar di Pulau Kapota, Wakatobi dlm kondisi sdh membusuk (18/11). Kondisi paus saat ditemukan tdk baik & bagian tubuhnya sdh tdk lengkap. Pihak berwenang tdk bisa melakukan nekropsi u/ mengetahui penyebab kematian paus tsb. pic.twitter.com/O1ywAr7hbD
— WWF-Indonesia (@WWF_ID) November 19, 2018