The remains of a dolphin that had been butchered and had its organs removed was found last week at a beach on the Jersey Shore.
The Marine Mammal Stranding Center said the animal was discovered on Wednesday at Allen Avenue Beach in Allenhurst, just north of Asbury Park. Its skin had been removed and its organs, save the heart and lungs, were missing.
“The animal’s flesh had been completely removed with clean cuts from a sharp instrument, leaving only the head, dorsal fin and flukes,” the center wrote in a statement. The remains were photographed and documented before being buried on the beach.
A witness reported seeing a dolphin struggling near the shore the night before that eventually made it over the sandbar and swam back out, but it’s unclear if it was the same animal.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement is investigating.
The federal agency announced in April it was investigating a bottlenose dolphin that was shot in Louisiana.
“Harassing, harming, killing or feeding wild dolphins is prohibited under the Marine Mammal Protection Act,” according to NOAA. Offenses are punishable by up to a year in jail and up to $100,000 in fines.
“Harassment…occurs when any act of pursuit, torment, or annoyance has the potential to injure the animal or disrupt its behavior,” according to Save Coastal Wildlife. New Jersey is home to several types of dolphins and porpoises, the organization says.