119 dolphins died this year on Romania’s Black Sea coast

BUCHAREST, Romania – A Romanian environmentalist group says more than 100 dolphins have died along Romania’s Black Sea coast this year, caught up in fishermen’s nets.

Mare Nostrum, a non-governmental association, said Thursday 119 dolphins had washed up on shores, urging people to “adopt a dolphin.” One of three species of dolphins found in the Black Sea is considered to be endangered.

The group said that it was the worst year since 2012, when 177 dolphins died after becoming entangled in nets.

Mare Nostrum said it had alerted authorities to illegal turbot fishing which is responsible for some of the deaths.

It is illegal to kill dolphins in Romania, which number just a few thousand, down from 300,000 about 50 years ago.