The fresh carcass of an adult male Rough Toothed dolphin was found on the shore at Kampung Pintasan, Kota Belud, about 75km from Kota Kinabalu, on the night of Christmas eve with a squid jig stuck in its stomach.

Sabah Wildlife director Augustine Tuuga said the squid jig measuring eight inches was embedded in the stomach causing severe trauma and other complications.

"We immediately dispatched our Wildlife Rescue Unit (WRU) to further investigate this case and to find out what happened to the dolphin.

"Though it was Christmas eve, WRU had a team on stand-by to attend to these kind of cases," he said in a statement in Kota Kinabalu today.

Sabah Wildlife assistant director Sen Nathan said the WRU team brought the carcass back to Kota Kinabalu for a post-mortem and was saddened by the discovery of the squid jig.

He said the metal jig, used for catching squid, also led to septicemia (blood poisoning) and starvation, resulting in the mammal's death.

"It is sad to see such a beautiful marine wildlife lose its life due to human folly, even if it was indirectly related.

"I would like to also advise the general public that if they do come across this kind of marine mammal beaching in the future, do give the Sabah Wildlife Department a call at 0128019289 or email us at [email protected]," he said.

- Bernama