KENDRAPARA: The carcass of a 17-feet-long saltwater crocodile has been recovered with plastic trash inside its stomach from Bhitarkanika National Park, pointing at the alarming level of pollution in one of India’s finest mangrove eco-systems.
The male crocodile was found in Hansua river near Bijulia village on Sunday. Forest personnel rushed to the village and retrieved the dead crocodile floating in the river. The carcass was later sent to the veterinary hospital at Rajnagar. Autopsy apparently found plastic and polythene along with a dog’s remains inside the dead reptile’s stomach.
“We can ascertain the exact reason behind the reptile’s death after getting the autopsy report,” said Manas Das, range officer of Bhitarkanika. Saltwater crocodiles are covered under the Schedule I of Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
This is the ninth incident of unnatural death of crocodiles in the last 27 months. At least 32 crocodiles have died unnaturally in the park within a decade. Recovery of polythene trash inside the crocodile’s stomach calls for reducing the use of plastic in villages around the park, secretary of Gahirmatha Marine Turtles and Mangrove Conservation Society Hemant Rout said.
“Crocodiles are unable to distinguish between food and plastic. The reptiles frequently consume plastic waste, which they are unable to digest or excrete. The waste accumulating in their stomach often clogs their digestive tracts, ultimately leading to death,” he said.
Apart from plastic trash, illegal fishing is also taking the lives of many crocodiles. Fishing is banned in the water bodies of Bhitarkanika but some locals illegally fish in the rivers. In 1975, the Ministry of Forest and Environment in collaboration with UNDP had started a crocodile breeding and rearing project in Dangamal within the park. A vast tract of forest and saltwater swamp, Bhitarkanika is home to 1,784 saltwater crocodiles as per the reptile census report.