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Three dead sperm whales washed up on a beach in Lincolnshire are believed to be from the same pod as a whale that died at Hunstanton.

Investigator into the deaths Rob Deaville, from the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme, told the Today programme that autopsies on the whales were unlikely to find a 'smoking gun' as to the cause, although they expected to find signs of starvation.

"Every sperm whale we’ve examined never has any food in the stomach," he told presenter Justin Webb.

"They feed exclusively on squid...once in the shallow North Sea they can’t feed. The problem there is if they don’t feed they become dehydrated - they get all their fluid from their diet."