Gangetic dolphin

Estimates have put the total population of the Ganges River Dolphins at around 2,000. Out of these, between 240 to 300 inhabit the Brahmaputra River system in India, according to a recent survey by an IUCN Sir Peter Scott Fund project. “Our research shows accidental killing through fisheries by-catch, followed by poaching for oil, are the major threats to the dolphins of the Brahmaputra river system,” says Project Leader Abdul Wakid. “Their habitat is also being degraded by human activities. Dam building and a proposed seismsic survey in the Brahmaputra river are potential threats.” The project, funded by Fondation Ensemble, was prompted by the need for some robust dolphin population data after Oil India Ltd. proposed to start prospecting for oil along the bed of the Brahmaputra River using air guns and explosives. The research identified eight river sections as potential protected areas and community-based dolphin conservation as the best strategy to save the dolphins. “The Brahmaputra River is very important habitat for these endangered dolphins,” says Gill Braulik, of IUCN’s Cetacean Specialist Group. “To protect them it is vital that we involve local river communities. In some places, like in the Kukurmara area of Kulsi River, for example, the dolphins are a tourist attraction due to protection by local communities. But in other areas, dolphins are accidentally killed in fishing nets or are sometimes deliberately caught and killed for their oil.” The project carried ou...

The Ganges river dolphin (also known as the south Asian river dolphin or Susu) is a freshwater The Ganges river dolphin makes up one of two subspecies of dolphin within their group. The other subspecies of dolphin is known as the Both dolphins belongs to the cetacean family and are part of the toothed whale suborder. Physical characteristics At birth the Ganges river dolphin appears to be a dark chocolate-brown color, however over time they begin to take on a grayish brown skin tone. They have a long tapered body with a small fin located on the lower back and a long but narrow beak used for capturing food that may be hidden in narrow places or mud banks. The Ganges river dolphin is blind. In order to navigate the river and find food this dolphin uses echolocation which allows it to use echos to find objects in the environment and determine its size, distance, direction and density. In terms of size the Ganges river dolphin may grow to an average of 7 1/2 – 9 ft in length and weigh between 330 – 380 pounds when fully matured. At full maturity the female river dolphin will grow to be larger than their male counterparts. Diet The Ganges river dolphin can be found hunting a variety of freshwater Some researchers believe that these dolphins may also consume birds, small turtles and small freshwater When it comes to hunting for food they generally hunt for prey living in shallow waters near the surface or in mud banks. Although they have a large beak used for finding hidden and ...

Excerpt: India's national aquatic animal is gangetic dolphin. River Ganga is home to these beautiful 2.5m long brown-grey creatures. Their habitat has been threatened and disturbed causing them to become endangered. Steps should be taken to gauge and tackle the problem of dramatically depleting number of dolphins. South Asian River Dolphin, also known as Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica). Dolphins are one of the oldest creatures in the world along with some species of turtles, crocodiles, and sharks. The Ganges river dolphin was officially discovered in 1801. Ganges river dolphins are found in Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The Ganges river dolphin is found in freshwater. Representative image by Dolphins are almost blind – although they can differentiate between light and dark and use echolocation to find food along the floor of the river. They hunt by emitting ultrasonic sounds which bounces off of fish and other prey enabling them to see an image in their mind. They are unique among cetaceans in that they swim on their sides. They reach sexual maturity at about 10yrs of age. Dolphin shows sexual dimorphism. Females are larger than males and give birth once every two to three years to only one calf. They are frequently found alone or in small groups and generally a mother ad calf travel together. They are usually found in turbulent water where there are enough fish for them to feed on. MAJOR CONCERNS...

There are two distinct subspecies of river dolphins living in the rivers of South Asia, the Indus river dolphin ( Platanista gangetica minor) and the Ganges river dolphin ( Platanista gangetica gangetica). Both subspecies are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List. The Indus river dolphin is endemic to Pakistan and was originally decimated by hunting. A ban on the hunting of dolphins was enacted in the 1970s, and their numbers have been increasing; however, the population is still small. The Indus river dolphin is currently threatened by severe habitat loss due to water diversion for irrigation, population fragmentation by gated dams, and bycatch in fishing nets. The Ganges river dolphin occurs in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh, and has a higher population number than it’s neighboring subspecies. Due to multiple threats, including pollution, water diversion, habitat fragmentation, and bycatch, the Ganges river dolphin is seriously threatened. Several major infrastructure projects within its region will impose a real risk for catastrophic population decline in the future. • Life span: Estimated around 25-35 years (Lockyer and Braulik 2014) • Gestation length: Approximately 10 months • Sexual maturity: 7-10 years • Diet: A variety of freshwater fish and invertebrates with carp, catfish and prawns are considered their primary food. • Appearance: These dolphins have very long snouts with long, thin, sharp teeth which are visible even with the mouth closed. • Feeding: To a...

Author of the picture: Whymper and P. Smit Lydekker, Richard. This work is in the public domain. Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica) INFORMATION AND CHARACTERISTICS. It is one of two subspecies of the South Asian river dolphin (Platanista gangetica), and it has the title of the national aquatic animal of India, where is also called Ganges susu or shushuk. HOW DO THEY LOOK? PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS. The Ganges River dolphin and its closely related subspecies, the Indus River dolphin, have an appearance quite different from that of oceanic dolphins. Specifically, this species has the following characteristics: Morphology. It has a robust body with an asymmetrical skull, a protruded front, and a very flexible neck. Its long snout measures almost 20 percent of its body length and in adult females is even longer than that of the males. It has a small crest on the melon. The dorsal fin is a little triangle with a broad base, and the longer pectoral flippers are flat. Its eyes are tiny. Order: Cetacea Family: Platanistidae Genus: Platanista Species: Platanista gangetica Weight and size. An adult has a length between 2 and 2.2 meters, and it has an approximate weight of 51-89 kilograms. Skin Coloration. The body has a dark gray or brown color, with a lighter color in the ventral area. Distinctive characteristics. It’s hard to differentiate a Ganges River dolphin from an Indus River dolphin, but the former species has a slightly longer tail than that of its relati...

Ganges river dolphin back in Nepal’s Narayani River. Photos: TEK MAHATO. It is the best possible New Year 2022 present. A local nature guide in Nepal, Tek Mahato took several photos of a Ganges One of the country’s four largest rivers, the Narayani crosses the border into India as Gandaki, and used to be part of the species’ traditional range, which has dwindled considerably in recent decades. Ganges river dolphins are now rare throughout Nepal. In 2016, the Department of Wildlife Conservation and National Parks estimated the river dolphin population in the country at 52 individuals: 43 in Indeed, it was only last year that we finalised the current distribution map of the Ganges river dolphin, just The Narayani is coloured in purple ( map below) for population extinct as no dolphins had been officially sighted in the river for ten years. That is until the message about Tek Mahato’s remarkable sighting came in. Ganges river dolphin distribution and density. Map: WWF This teaches us two important lessons: nature is adaptive and bounces back whenever humans allow her to do so. This hopeful message is very welcome at the start of 2022, which is an absolutely critical year for The return of Ganges dolphins to the Narayani shows that life will return to the world’s rivers if we take the right steps to restore and protect them. Freshwater species populations have collapsed by 84% since 1970 and all six river dolphin species are now facing extinction. However, we can reverse these...

A newly-described, prehistoric dolphin species - illustrated here pursuing a shoal of squid - had unique, tusk-like teeth unlike any seen in today’s dolphins or whales. Image / Daniel Verhelst A newly-described, prehistoric dolphin species - illustrated here pursuing a shoal of squid - had unique, tusk-like teeth unlike any seen in today’s dolphins or whales. Image / Daniel Verhelst Scientists have described a new dolphin species armed with protruding, tusk-like teeth for swift and violent attacks on prey – but we’re about 25 million years too late to see it. Described in a just-published paper, the ancient dolphin was identified from fossil remains found in a fallen rock in Otago’s Awamoko Valley, within the recently designated UNESCO Waitaki Whitestone Geopark, back in December 1998. While most of the fossil dolphin’s skeleton wasn’t complete, with just a few ribs and vertebrae remaining, its skull and jaw was “exceptionally well preserved”, said the paper’s lead author and Otago University researcher Ambre Coste. That enabled the researchers to determine the species – formally named Nihohae matakoi and first found by paleontologist Seabourne Rust - was unlike any of the dolphins or whales found in our oceans today. “This ancient species of dolphin is very unusual as it has teeth at the front of its mouth that stick straight out horizontally, something not seen in any modern dolphins,” Coste said. “It would likely have measured slightly over two metres long, had a slight...

Estimates have put the total population of the Ganges River Dolphins at around 2,000. Out of these, between 240 to 300 inhabit the Brahmaputra River system in India, according to a recent survey by an IUCN Sir Peter Scott Fund project. “Our research shows accidental killing through fisheries by-catch, followed by poaching for oil, are the major threats to the dolphins of the Brahmaputra river system,” says Project Leader Abdul Wakid. “Their habitat is also being degraded by human activities. Dam building and a proposed seismsic survey in the Brahmaputra river are potential threats.” The project, funded by Fondation Ensemble, was prompted by the need for some robust dolphin population data after Oil India Ltd. proposed to start prospecting for oil along the bed of the Brahmaputra River using air guns and explosives. The research identified eight river sections as potential protected areas and community-based dolphin conservation as the best strategy to save the dolphins. “The Brahmaputra River is very important habitat for these endangered dolphins,” says Gill Braulik, of IUCN’s Cetacean Specialist Group. “To protect them it is vital that we involve local river communities. In some places, like in the Kukurmara area of Kulsi River, for example, the dolphins are a tourist attraction due to protection by local communities. But in other areas, dolphins are accidentally killed in fishing nets or are sometimes deliberately caught and killed for their oil.” The project carried ou...

There are two distinct subspecies of river dolphins living in the rivers of South Asia, the Indus river dolphin ( Platanista gangetica minor) and the Ganges river dolphin ( Platanista gangetica gangetica). Both subspecies are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List. The Indus river dolphin is endemic to Pakistan and was originally decimated by hunting. A ban on the hunting of dolphins was enacted in the 1970s, and their numbers have been increasing; however, the population is still small. The Indus river dolphin is currently threatened by severe habitat loss due to water diversion for irrigation, population fragmentation by gated dams, and bycatch in fishing nets. The Ganges river dolphin occurs in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh, and has a higher population number than it’s neighboring subspecies. Due to multiple threats, including pollution, water diversion, habitat fragmentation, and bycatch, the Ganges river dolphin is seriously threatened. Several major infrastructure projects within its region will impose a real risk for catastrophic population decline in the future. • Life span: Estimated around 25-35 years (Lockyer and Braulik 2014) • Gestation length: Approximately 10 months • Sexual maturity: 7-10 years • Diet: A variety of freshwater fish and invertebrates with carp, catfish and prawns are considered their primary food. • Appearance: These dolphins have very long snouts with long, thin, sharp teeth which are visible even with the mouth closed. • Feeding: To a...

Excerpt: India's national aquatic animal is gangetic dolphin. River Ganga is home to these beautiful 2.5m long brown-grey creatures. Their habitat has been threatened and disturbed causing them to become endangered. Steps should be taken to gauge and tackle the problem of dramatically depleting number of dolphins. South Asian River Dolphin, also known as Ganges River Dolphin (Platanista gangetica). Dolphins are one of the oldest creatures in the world along with some species of turtles, crocodiles, and sharks. The Ganges river dolphin was officially discovered in 1801. Ganges river dolphins are found in Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The Ganges river dolphin is found in freshwater. Representative image by Dolphins are almost blind – although they can differentiate between light and dark and use echolocation to find food along the floor of the river. They hunt by emitting ultrasonic sounds which bounces off of fish and other prey enabling them to see an image in their mind. They are unique among cetaceans in that they swim on their sides. They reach sexual maturity at about 10yrs of age. Dolphin shows sexual dimorphism. Females are larger than males and give birth once every two to three years to only one calf. They are frequently found alone or in small groups and generally a mother ad calf travel together. They are usually found in turbulent water where there are enough fish for them to feed on. MAJOR CONCERNS...