Chile revealed last week that endangered sei whales had been found beached in the country for the first time. The more than 30 dead whales were discovered on the southern coast in late April by scientists, who released photographs with the government's announcement.

Crime again left emotions raw across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Haitians protested a judge's dismissal of charges against two men in a high-profile kidnapping case. More than a dozen families in El Salvador abandoned their homes in two rural communities after threats from gang members. In Mexico, the body of radio journalist Armando Saldana Morales was found shot to death.

Peruvian parents held up a portrait of their late son who had gotten his father's permission to haul coca in a backpack to pay for his agronomy studies. He was found shot to death during a 2013 cocaine smuggling trip.

Not all was grim, with people in the region also out celebrating.

Cubans held a blessing ceremony for gay couples in Havana ahead of the Global Day against Homophobia on May 17.

Mexicans re-enacted the Battle of Puebla on Cinco de Mayo, commemorating the victory of an ill-equipped army of Zacapoaxtla Indians over the occupying French army in 1862.

And in the sports world, an owl stood on the field during a Copa Libertadores soccer match in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo.