T

hree whale sharks were found dead at Nangalili Beach in Benteng Dewa village, West Manggarai regency, West Nusa Tenggara, on Tuesday.

Two of the whale sharks were found dismembered after fishermen and local people took their meat for consumption, Kupang National Marine Conservation Bureau (BKKPN) chief Ikram Sangadji said, adding that the sharks died before they were found by the fishermen.

He suspected that the three sharks, which were 2 meters, 5.8 meters and 7.7 meters long, found themselves stuck on the beach after hunting fish near the shore.

“Following a meeting with the Benteng Dewa village chief and community leaders, the three deceased [sharks] were burned before being returned to the sea,” Ikram said on Thursday.

Kupang BKKPN empowerment and supervision unit head Herri Putra said that he and his team arrived at the location in the evening the day the sharks were found. By that time, local residents had already cut the meat off of two of the sharks. They stopped after being informed that the species was protected under law.

A week earlier, a 4.4-meter long short-finned pilot whale was found beached at Oka Kea Beach in Nggidimeda village, Rote Ndao regency. However, local residents rescued the whale and returned it to the sea.