Deer die at famous Japanese park after eating plastic bags

Nine deer have died recently at a famous Japanese park after swallowing plastic bags, The Associated Press reports.

Nine of the 14 deer that have died since March had plastic in their stomachs, with masses of tangled plastic litter and snack packets recovered from their stomachs, according to the AP.

The heaviest mass removed from one of the bodies weighed close to 10 pounds, the news service notes.{mosads}

With more than 1,000 deer, Nara Park reportedly allows tourists to feed the animals sugar-free crackers bought from local shops. And while those crackers don’t come in plastic bags, some people carry them around while visiting the park.

The deer may have eaten the bags because they associated the plastic with food, a veterinarian told the AP. 

Animals have continued to die in recent years after ingesting or getting caught in littered waste. A juvenile sperm whale washed ashore in Italy in May and was discovered to have a stomach full of plastic waste.

Last month, a sea turtle was found dead on the Florida coast after getting tangled in plastic waste and a fishing line. A mother bird in Florida was also seen feeding a chick a cigarette butt that was left behind on the beach.