The carcass of a six-foot long dolphin washed ashore at Bhuigaon in Vasai on Saturday morning.
The fish was sighted by Hanif Patel, a local resident. He alerted the forest department, after which officials reached the spot.
“The dolphin may have been hit by a passing fishing trawler or may have got stuck in fishing nets,” said Bhushan Bhoir, a zoologist from Dandekar College, Palghar.
Local fishermen do not harm or kill dolphins as the state government awards them around ₹25,000 for rescuing injured whales and dolphins, he added. “We still need to create awareness among the fishing community,” said the zoologist.
Dolphins are often sighted eight to 10 nautical miles (one nautical mile equals 1.8 kilometre) off Pachubunder, Arnala, Rajodi, Rangaon and other coastal areas off the coast of Vasai .