Penguins wash up dead on Rio's coast

Rio de Janeiro: Hundreds of baby penguins swept from Antarctica and Patagonia are washing up dead on Rio de Janeiro's tropical beaches, experts said on Saturday.

While it is common here to find some penguins -both dead and alive - swept by strong ocean currents from the Strait of Magellan, there have been more this year than at any time in recent memory, said Eduardo Pimenta, coastal protection official in the resort city of Cabo Frio.

Experts are divided over the possible causes. Some say overfishing has forced the penguins to swim further from shore to find fish to eat, others blame increasing pollution.