Thousands Of Dead Prawns Washed Up In Chile

Thousands of dead prawns have washed up on Chile's coastline leaving authorities confused about what could have killed them.

The chief investigator said police were compiling as much evidence as possible to determine what killed the vast number of crustaceans off Concepcion province.

"What we are doing today is compiling the most evidence possible to determine if we are facing some kind of environmental crime," a spokesman said.

Victor Casanova, of Chile's Environmental and Cultural Heritage Crimes Unit, said police were going to investigate a variety of possibilities in an effort to understand how the animals died.

"We are going to go out to Coronel Bay to determine the physical temperature parameters, electric conductivity, and above all the oxygen, which is an important issue to highlight," he said.

In recent years a startling number of dead sea creatures have been washing up on South America's Pacific coasts.

In February the bodies of dozens of animals, including sea turtles, sea lions, dolphins, sharks and marine birds, were washed up on a Peruvian coastline.

Environmental experts have said that causes vary depending on the kind of animal and the location, but that some of the possible explanations include viruses, offshore oil exploration, and poisoned food sources.