WWF calls for action to save Mekong dolphins
Conservation group WWF on Wednesday called for urgent action to prevent the extinction of freshwater dolphins in the Mekong River, including the creation of special conservation zones. Entanglement in fishing nets, low calf survival rates and a steady degradation of the creature’s habitat are threatening the estimated 85 Irrawaddy dolphins left in Cambodia and Laos, WWF said. “Evidence is strong that very few young animals survive to adulthood, as older dolphins die off and are not replaced,” Li Lifeng, director of WWF’s freshwater programme, said in a statement. “This tiny population is at high risk by its small size alone. With the added pressures of gill net entanglement and high calf mortality we are really worried for the future of dolphins.” The group urged the Cambodian government to consider a ban on gill nets. But the Cambodian official tasked with caring for the country’s Irrawaddy dolphins criticised the group’s research methods and insisted there remained “about 155 to 175” of the animals in the Mekong.
