Italian virus may be responsible for dolphins deaths

Italian dolphin virus fears.

Ten young dolphins have been found washed up on the shores of the Gulf of Venice over the last ten days between Basso Veneto and the Marche, prompting fears of a lethal virus. Experts are particularly concerned because the youthful age of the dolphins makes a natural cause for the deaths less likely.

The dolphins were washed up on the beaches already in an advanced state of decomposition. Experts are making use of a helicopter provided by the forestry authority to try to find a dolphin that has recently died in order to carry out tests. A virus that struck the dolphin population in 1991 resulted in over 500 specimens being washed up on the beaches of the Mediterranean.