More than 100 dolphins have been found dead in the Amazon river, as a historic drought and all-time high water temperatures bite.
All of the dead marsupials were found in Lake Tefé, Amazonas, Brazil, having died over the last seven days according to the Mamirauá Institute.
In some areas, temperatures in the lake have exceeded 102F (39C), with the institute citing it as a cause behind the mass deaths brought on by climate change.
A spokesman said: “It’s still early to determine the cause of this extreme event but according to our experts, it is certainly connected to the drought period and high temperatures in Lake Tefé.”
Ayan Fleischmann, geoscience researcher at Brazil’s Mamirauá Institute, also said: “At 6pm yesterday, in Lake Tefé we measured more than 39C (102.2F). This is very hot, horrible.”
Investigations are ongoing into the cause of the deaths, with researchers also looking into possible disease and sewage contamination of the Amazon.
But British researcher Daniel Tregidgo, who lives near Lake Tefé, claimed that the last month of weather has seemed like “science fiction”.
He said: “The past month in Tefé has seemed like a science-fiction climate-change scenario.
“Regular sightings of pink river dolphins are one of the great privileges of living in the heart of the Amazon.”
“Pretty much every time I go to the market to have breakfast I see them come to the surface and it reminds me why I live here,” Tregidgo added.
“To know that one has died is sad, but to see piles of carcasses, knowing that this drought has killed over 100, is a tragedy.”
Meanwhile, the Amazon, the world’s largest river, has seen its water levels fall by 30cm every day over the past two weeks.
Dolphins, known as botos, are considered an indicator of the health of a river, and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature classifies them as endangered animals.
They are one of only six existing freshwater dolphin species left in the world.
Daphne Willems, from the conservation group WWF, said: “This extraordinary species is already endangered – so losing so many individuals in such a short space of time is disastrous.”
In August, Brazil’s President Lula da Silva pledged a “new Amazon dream” in a bid to repair economic “plundering” and environmental devastation.
The pledge came just four days after environment minister Marina Silva shared that deforestation in the Brazilian section of the Amazon fell by at least 60 percent in July compared to the same month last year.
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