An animal rescue group said 61 dead cetaceans - an order of aquatic mammals that includes whales and dolphins - had been recorded since the oil spill.

Russian President Vladimir Putin calls the incident an "ecological disaster" as officials and volunteers attempt to clean beaches contaminated with the heavy oil.

Oil from two ageing and damaged Russian tankers was detected Friday off the coast of Sevastopol, the largest city in Moscow-annexed Crimea, a local official said.

A dolphin rescue center in Russia says 32 dolphins have died since fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken tankers three weeks ago in the Kerch Strait near the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula

An oil spill in the Black Sea is believed to have resulted in the death of over 30 cetaceans, including several members of an endangered subspecies. The spill, which occurred after two Russian oil tankers were damaged in a storm in mid-December 2024,