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Dead sperm whale found with 220 pounds of trash in its stomach, officials say

A young dead sperm whale that washed up on a Scottish island last week had 220 pounds of trash in its stomach, officials said.

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The male whale died Thursday on Luskentyre beach on the Isle of Hebrides, according to Dan Parry, the administrator of a Facebook page that attempts to keep the nearby Seilebost beach.trash free, CNN reported.

Workers with the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme, discovered debris in the whale's stomach during the necropsy, according to a post on its Facebook page Sunday. Workers found a "huge ball" of debris, including plastic that included "sections of net, bundles of rope, plastic cups, bags, gloves, packing straps and tubing."

According to SMASS, the whale was nearly 46 feet long and weighed around 26 tons, USA Today reported.

"The (whale's) intestines had virtually nothing in them as it could no longer process food," Parry wrote on Facebook.

However, SMASS officials wrote on Facebook they could not find evidence the debris had impacted or obstructed the whale's intestines. The whale was buried on the beach.

"Debris in our oceans is everyone's problem," Parry wrote. "The fishing industry need(s) to do better, but equally, we all need to do more.

"Watching this today, makes me despair for the environment, totally falling apart around us."