Four dead dolphins washing up on beaches near Aberystwyth and in Tywyn this weekend has prompted an investigation from authorities.

Conservation organisation Marine Environmental Monitoring said, due to the proximity of the animals, it had deployed experts to investigate the causes and any possible link between the deaths.

A common dolphin was found dead in Tywyn and another in Clarach Bay while a pair washed up on Tanybwlch beach.

The common dolphin is regularly seen in Cardigan Bay and across the west Wales coastline along with bottlenose dolphins and their smaller cousins, harbour porpoises.

Cardigan Bay is said to be home to Britain’s biggest resident population of dolphins, with New Quay a particular hotspot.

A Marine Environmental Monitoring spokesperson said: “We have been busy this weekend with various reports of dead dolphins washing up around the Welsh cost.

“The first was in Tywyn, Gwynedd. This was the smallest of them and was a juvenile male common dolphin which, when first reported to us, had a wound on its back between the dorsal fin and tail fluke.

“Unfortunately, scavengers had attacked the same area by the time we found it making it impossible to ascertain a cause for the wound. The juvenile dolphin did show lots of signs that it had been attacked by another dolphin.

“The next one was on the beach in Clarach Bay, Ceredigion. This one was also a juvenile male common dolphin. Out of the ones we got to examine, this one had been dead the longest - with it showing signs of decomposition as well as scavenger damage. Due to its condition, it wasn’t possible to come to any conclusions.

“The third was on Tanybwlch in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion. Again, another juvenile common dolphin, but most likely the oldest of the three going by its length. This one had also suffered some scavenger damage, but apart from that it had no obvious injuries. It did look to be of poor body condition (malnourished).

“Unfortunately, the fourth - which was also on Tanybwlch - had been washed away by the storm. By the photos provided by those that had reported it, this one looked to be an adult common dolphin, which had been dead for some time.

“It isn’t unusual to get a lot of reports of cetaceans washing up when there is bad weather like the weather, we are having around Wales currently. We are also able to roughly plot where we expect to get reports of strandings by working out where there will be on-shore wind.

“This is the case with these four. There doesn’t seem to be any link between the four - with them all showing signs of dying at different times and with different possible causes.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to get out to all the different reports we have had this weekend, but thankyou to everyone that has reported a stranding as each report gives us further data as to what is happening in our seas.”

The organisation says that if you do spot a dead or stranded animal anywhere around the UK coastline, call the strandings line on 0800 652 0333