A $20,000 reward is being offered for information on the cruel killing of a young bottlenose dolphin, which was discovered riddled with bullet holes.
On March 13, a partner of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration received a report that a dead dolphin, which had been shot numerous times, had been found on West Mae’s Beach in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.
A necropsy, or animal autopsy, revealed “multiple bullets lodged in the carcass, including in the brain, spinal cord, and heart of the dolphin,” according to an NOAA report.
Officials determined that the dolphin appeared to have died of trauma which occurred “at or near the time of death.”
The NOAA’s law enforcement department is investigating the death and offering the reward for information leading to the criminal conviction or assessment of civil penalty for the dolphin killer or killers.
If identified and convicted, the killer(s) could be dealt a fine of up to $100,000 and face up to one year of jail time per violation.
“This specific incident appears to be intentional,” communications specialist for NOAA Allison Garrett told the Washington Examiner. “Any intentional death of a marine mammal is harmful to a species population and that is why there are specific laws and regulations that NOAA OLE enforces.”
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Harassing, harming, killing, or feeding wild dolphins is forbidden under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
”While these types of incidents are not common, unfortunately they are not unheard of,” Garrett said.
