Dolphin eye by Stewart Macdonald. A bottlenose dolphin stares at the camera while her pod-mates linger in the background. Shark Bay, Western Australia.

A peak wildlife body has blamed stormwater pollution for the deaths of three bottlenose dolphins in three days in southeast Queensland’s Moreton Bay. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday last week, an adult carcass washed up at Victoria Point, a small adult was found at Ormiston and a calf at the Port of Brisbane. The cause of death in each case has been listed by authorities as “unknown, no obvious injuries”. Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland Simon Baltais says Moreton Bay has had a recent outbreak of algae blooms. While some people have pointed the finger at an oil and container spill that released 62 tonnes of fertiliser into the bay earlier this year, Mr Baltais says he believes the dolphin deaths are indicative of a much wider problem. “There is a worry out there that things are going backwards. We are seeing mangroves die off, more seagrass damage, blue-green algal blooms and now we have dolphin deaths. Things aren’t looking real good,” Mr Baltais told AAP on Sunday. …

Pollution killing Queensland dolphins