Guangzhou's smartest dolphin L, 7 years old, died after veterinarians took a steel scrap from her stomach Wednesday afternoon in the ocean world, the Guangzhou Daily reported.

She died of panic after the surgery, a vet said.

L fell sick after the May Day holidays. Her only sustenance in the last two days was injected nutrients.

Veterinarians suspected something had been lodged in L's stomach and operated on the dolphin to remove the piece. However, L screamed loudly 15 minutes later. Vets and tamers dragged her out of the pool and tried in vain to administer emergency treatment. L died 10 minutes later.

More than 10 staff members cried at the news.

L was taken from Japan to Guangzhou's ocean world in November 2003. She was the main performer in the dolphin show and was always nimble and hardworking. It was reportedly the smartest among six dolphins in the ocean world.

(Shenzhen Daily June 11, 2005)