BRIEFING RIVER INT DOLPHINS 2019 AT RISK AMAZON RIVER DOLPHINS
Main © naturepl.com / Mark Carwardine / WWF, inset © Jaime Rojo / WWF-US SCIENTIFIC NAME: INIA GEOFFRENSIS
HOW We don’t know the exact number of Amazon River dolphins left, MANY ARE but it is likely to be in the tens of thousands. This means that this is HOW CAN YOU GET INVOLVED? LEFT? a vulnerable species and classified as endangered by IUCN.
Only by building and growing a Also known as the boto, the pink Amazon river dolphin is widely MORE strong global community of partners distributed throughout much of the Amazon and Orinoco river ABOUT will we be able to secure the long- basins stretching through Colombia, Venezuela, Brasil, Bolivia, Perú, THEM term future of river dolphins. Ecuador and Guyana. The boto is pale pink in colour and unlike other river dolphins, has a flexible neck which allows it to move its head WWF is excited to work with local left and right. The Amazon river dolphin also has a long snout, a and global partners on key projects rounded head and small dorsal fin, with overall length varying from including: 2 to 2.5 m. The boto feeds on fish and other aquatic organisms • mapping and identifying critical such as turtles and crabs. sectors to river dolphin habitats;
WHY IS One of the biggest threats that the Amazon River Dolphin faces • establishing baseline population THE comes from development projects. Big infrastructure projects can numbers and range data; alter river flows, which in turn has huge ecological impacts including AMAZON • investing in nature-oriented tourism changing the species composition, disrupting sediment transport and RIVER DOLPHIN and related activities; THREATENED? deposition patterns, fragmenting habitat and preventing connectivity – all impacting the dolphin’s ability to breed and to survive. • working with key local (and inter) national industries to transform their There are many other threats to the boto including mercury business practices and adopt water poisoning due to gold mining. They are also often deliberately killed stewardship practices; for use as fish bait, amongst others. • creating a global movement to unite WHAT WWF is using innovative approaches like drones to count Amazon and inspire governments, businesses IS WWF River dolphins—a method that is quicker, cheaper and potentially and communities to secure the long- DOING? more accurate than traditional monitoring by specialists. WWF term future of river dolphins, their Amazon country offices are working together and joining forces with rivers and the communities other local NGOs, under the South American River Dolphin Initiative that depend on them. (SARDI), to develop regional approaches to scientific research • working towards a signed Inter- and protected cross border areas. This local coalition also gathers Governmental Declaration by 2021 to expertise to establish population sizes and protect river dolphins worldwide. identify main threats to the species and their habitats. One such method includes JOIN US. equipping river dolphins with satellite tags TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE to study their migration behavior. THIS HAPPEN. • RIVER DOLPHINS AT RISK PANDA.ORG
MAHAKAM YANGTZE
YANGTZE FINLESS PORPOISE YANGTZE POPULATION 1,000 MEKONG IRRAWADDY MAHAKAM MEKONG YANGTZE SOUTH ASIAN RIVER DOLPHIN Indus Subspecies: POPULATION Approx. 1,800–1,900 GANGES INDUS IRRAWADDY GANGES ORINOCO AMAZON POPULATION 3,500–5,000 SOUTH ASIAN RIVER DOLPHIN Ganges Subspecies: INDUS For more information, please contact: Daphne Willems | WWF River Dolphin Initiative Lead | Mobile 6 19302529 +31 | E-mail: [email protected] | to gold mining gold to has been found in dolphins in both Asia and South America. embankments. In Asia, river dolphin habitat has decreased by 50-70% and in South America Asia by 10%. and South America are in the grips an of infrastructure explosion; example, for with hundreds dams of planned in the Amazon, and a potential giant dam in the lower Mekong (Sambor). Mining, agriculture and industrial development that degrade water quality. Deteriorating water quality to due agriculture runoff and industrial effluents is a serious threat dolphins to in Asia, while mercury poisoning due
• Registered Trademark. WWF, Avenue du Mont-Bland, Gland, 1196 Switzerland 22 +41 364 – Tel. 9111 Fax 22 +41 364 0332. For contact details and further information, please visit our international website at www.panda.org © 1986 Panda symbol WWF – World Wide Fund for Nature (Formerly World WildlifeFund) ® “WWF” is a WWF HOW WILL WE DELIVER THIS INITIATIVE? WWF has long-term river dolphin conservation experience, we knowbut that we cannot bend the curve alone. Our solution is mobilize to a powerful global community of partners secure to the future river of dolphins and the communities that depend healthy on and productive freshwater ecosystems.
POPULATION Each sub-population has <100 individuals IRRAWADDY DOLPHIN IRRAWADDY
panda.org TM . TUCUXI POPULATION Unknown le sib s AMAZON r po e h ORINOCO t ge POPULATION Unknown, but likely <5,000 individuals AMAZON RIVER DOLPHIN Bolivian Subspecies: o t Working to sustain the natural Working world for people and wildlife RIVER DOLPHINS DISTRIBUTION DOLPHINS RIVER AMAZON RIVER DOLPHIN POPULATION Unknown, but likely tens of thousands Unsustainable fishing and fishing-related activities. In Asia, (illegal) bycatch is the number cause one river of dolphin mortality. In South America, intentional killing riverof dolphins fish for bait meat and affects several thousand dolphins per year. Infrastructure projects that affect habitat connectivity, including hydropower dams, irrigation barrages and including the Yangtze, Mekong, Indus, and Ganges and Indus, Asia in Mekong, Orinoco the and including Yangtze, the Amazon and basins South in America. There are however only five existing species river of River dolphins are found in 15 countries,River dolphins 15 in found are covering most ecologically world’s the some of diverse river basins, RIVER DOLPHINS AT RISK RIVER AT DOLPHINS dolphins left in the today world and they are all endangered or critically endangered WWF’s answer disrupt to and reverse this trend is to build a global movement, the River Dolphin Initiative, to secure the long-term future river of dolphins, their rivers and the communities that depend them. on Our vision is that we by will 2030, have stopped the decline of river dolphin populations in Asia and South America and will have restored and doubled the most threatened populations. There are three major global threats river to dolphins: • •