The cause of death is unknown, about 2000 penguins were washed up on the coast | avian influenza | unknown
Pengpai News reporter Nan Boyi
Over the past 10 days, approximately 2000 penguins that died in the sea have appeared on the eastern coast of Uruguay
Over the past 10 days, approximately 2000 penguins that died in the sea have appeared on the eastern coast of Uruguay. At present, the cause of death for these penguins is unknown or not caused by avian influenza.
According to Agence France Presse, Carmen Lezagoyan, head of the animal department of the Uruguayan Ministry of Environment, said that most of these Magellan penguins were young and died in the Atlantic Ocean, being carried to the coast of Uruguay by ocean currents.
Lezhagoyan said that these penguins died in the sea, with 90% being young and underage penguins. When they rushed ashore, they had no fat reserves in their bodies and were all on an empty stomach. She also emphasized that all the avian influenza test results of the collected samples were negative.
![The cause of death is unknown, about 2000 penguins were washed up on the coast | avian influenza | unknown](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/8b510bd35035d63f31d0e52f6722d06f.jpg)
According to reports, Magellan penguins are nesting in southern Argentina. In the winter of the southern hemisphere, they migrate northward in search of food and warm water, even reaching the coast of the state of San Espirito in Brazil.
"A certain proportion of deaths are normal, but not such a large number," Lezhagoyan recalled, stating that a similar penguin death incident occurred in Brazil last year for an unknown reason.
Environmental activists attribute the increase in deaths of Magellan penguins to overfishing and illegal fishing. "From the 1990s to the early 21st century, we began to see a lack of food for wildlife. Resources have been overexploited," Tessol from SOS Marine Wildlife Rescue told Agence France Presse. He added that the Atlantic subtropical cyclone that hit southeastern Brazil in mid July could also lead to the death of the most vulnerable animals due to adverse weather conditions.
In addition to penguins, Tessol stated that he recently discovered the bodies of animals such as petrels, albatrosses, seagulls, turtles, and sea lions on beaches in the Maldonado Province east of the Uruguayan capital Montevideo.