Vladimir Putin is not only killing innocent Ukrainians, but his naval forces have killed more than 5,000 dolphins. Scientists who are knowledgeable about Putin’s invasion report that sonar devices used by the Russian invading force have killed thousands of dolphins, causing their decaying corpses to wash up on shore. Although authorities estimate that Putin’s war has killed 5,000 dolphins, the true number is likely much higher as Russian ships and submarines continue to flood the Black Sea with their presence and kill dolphins in the process.
Biologist Rusev reportedly said that only five percent of the dolphins Putin has killed had washed ashore. As a result, the total number of dolphins slaughtered by Russian ships may be much higher than the initial estimate of 5,000. The dolphins that do not wash ashore inevitably sink to the bottom of the Black Sea and are never seen again. “They are not available for detection and counting from the shore, so we believe that during the Russian barbarians’ war against Ukraine, tens of thousands of Dolphins have already died,” Rusev told the animal rights group Open Cages Ukraine.
In an earlier Facebook post, Rusev suggested that sonar used by Putin’s naval vessels, like ships and submarines, have been hurting wildlife in the area. “Dolphins fall into the radiation zone of ships’ navigation devices, which disables their organs of navigation and echolocation,” Rusev wrote to his followers on Facebook. Dolphins rely on echolocation to navigate the water, the Daily Mail reports. They use this skill to find food and avoid potentially dangerous obstacles and predators. However, Putin’s invading forces produce sonar, along with the constant sound of ships’ engines, causing the dolphins distress and interfering with their ability to navigate the waters of the Black Sea.
Additionally, dolphins that washed up in the mouth of Bulgaria’s Ropotamo river suffered burns that were likely from Russian mines planted in the open water. Russian mines are not only killing precious wildlife, but their sonar is blocking the animals’ abilities to avoid the mines and other dangers.
Loud wartime sounds like bombardments make the dolphins go temporarily “blind” because they can no longer use echolocation to navigate the water, per reports.
“Having lost their orientation, animals lose acoustic control over the environment. ‘Blind’ dolphins are in stress and panic, unable to navigate in space. As a result, they hit all kinds of obstacles, including mines, and crash against rocks. And the main thing – such ‘paralyzed’ dolphins cannot catch fish and quickly get exhausted,” the biologist wrote. He added, “Exhausted dolphins are weak dolphins. They fall into the nets of Turkish fishermen without even reacting to pingers (a special dolphin-repelling device that Turkish fishermen install on nets).” Putin needs to stop harming sea life immediately. “I have never seen this before. This is something absolutely new and terrifying for scientists,” he told the Kyiv Independent.