River Dolphin Essay

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Introduction The Ganges River dolphin, Platanistagangeticagangetica, commonly known as susu, is one of the only three recognized obligate freshwater dolphins, which inhabit rivers and estuaries in Asia and South America, and all are among the most endangered cetaceans on Earth. The remaining species are the Indus River dolphin, Platanistagangetica minor, common name bhulan of Pakistan, and the Amazon River dolphin, Iniageoffrensis, common name boto of Latin America. The fourth one was the 'baiji' or Chinese river dolphin, Lipotesvexillifer, was declared functionally extinct in 2006 (Turvey et al 2007; Hopkin 2007).The Government of India acted on time and Prime Minister declared the animal as National Aquatic Animal on 5th October 2009 and a formal notification was issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forests on 10th May 2010. Although some marine dolphin species, like Irrawaddy dolphin, Orcaellabrevirostris, are facultative and commonly found in rivers quite far upstream, river dolphins are morphologically and phylogenetically distinct from marine dolphins. Because rivers are more vulnerable to degradation than the oceans, river dolphins are facing worse situation compared to the marine cetaceans. The Ganges River dolphin is endemic to the Indian sub-continent and has a fairly extensive distribution range. It is found in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of India and Bangladesh, while a few individuals may survive in the Karnali, and the SaptaKosi Rivers in Nepal. A meaningful estimate of range-wise abundance is lacking, however, approximately 2500-3000 Ganges River dolphins are assumed to survive across their entire range. The IUCN changed its status from ‘Vulnerable’ to ‘Endangered’ in 1996 as the species population was declining in its entire distribution range. The deliberate

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