Italian tourists caused the death of a seahorse in Ibiza: ‘They casually passed it between them, treating it like a mere toy’

At Es Caló des Moro in Ibiza, a group of Italian tourists were witnessed taking a seahorse out of the water, passing it around, and eventually burying it in the sand. Despite an attempt by an eleven-year-old girl to save it, the seahorse died. Local police were informed, and the tourists claimed they found the seahorse dead while swimming. An oceanographer conducted a necropsy, revealing the seahorse likely died from asphyxiation when taken out of the sea. Seahorses are protected species vulnerable to habitat destruction and illegal trafficking for traditional medicine.