The body of a seven tonne humpback whale has been found on a Rio de Janeiro beach.

Brazilian environmental authorities confirmed it was the same whale that had been rescued just days earlier over the weekend.

On Sunday (October 22), the four metre long (13 feet) whale beached itself on the Playa Grande beach.

Dozens of beachgoers and experts gathered to save it. They successfully managed to tow the mammal out to open water.

However, the body of the same whale was found on a rocky outcropping in the same area just two days later in a state of advanced decomposition.