THREE dead dolphins have washed ashore at Chesil Beach on Portland.

Scientists from London's Natural History Museum are investigating the cause of death of one of the creatures, due to concerns that it looks particularly thin.

Dorset Wildlife Trust said that a team from the Natural History Museum in London were due to visit the area today to perform a necropsy, which, it is hoped, will establish the cause of death.

Marc Kativu-Smith, centre manager at Dorset Wildlife Trust Coastal Centre, has urged anyone who spots a dead dolphin to report it to them.

He said: "Three different dolphins washed ashore on Chesil Beach on Wednesday – two are heavily decomposed, and one is very fresh.

"We have bagged up the fresh carcass and put it aside for the Natural History Museum to come and collect as it looked quite thin, and we thought it would be worth investigating the cause of death.

"We do not believe the cause of death (of the three dolphins) is linked because they're all at different stages of decomposition.

"One of them is a harbour porpoise; one is too badly decomposed to be identified, and the fresher of the three is a common dolphin."

There have been a number of reports of carcasses on the county's shores this winter, including at Stair Hole, Lulworth and at Chesil Cove, Portland

Mr Kativu-Smith said: "There can be all kinds of different causes of death; we encourage anyone who finds a dead dolphin to report it to us.

"By monitoring numbers of dolphins washed ashore we can keep track of any big increases that could point to something happening at sea."

Anyone who finds a marine mammal washed up should report it as soon as possible by calling Dorset Wildlife Trust on 01305 264620 or emailing kimmeridge@dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk.

It is helpful if you can include a photograph of the animal but not to touch it as they can carry diseases.

Once it has been reported a DWT representative will be able to complete a strandings report to send to CSIP for their national database and potentially further investigation.

If you see a dolphin or sea mammal in distress call the coastguard on 999.