WWF report second dolphin found dead in one week
Villagers discover a baby dolphin carcass in the Mekong River in Tboung Khmum province more than 50 kilometres from its habitat in Kratie province. Fresh News
The World Wide Fund for Nature-Cambodia (WWF) and the Fishery Administration yesterday were alerted to another Irrawaddy dolphin which died in Tboung Khmum province.
According to WWF’s statement yesterday, the organisation mourns the tragic loss of a dolphin that was found dead in Roka Knor commune, Krouch Chhmar district.
It said that the dolphin’s carcass was discovered floating in the river by a local villager, who reported the incident to relevant authorities soon after the discovery.
After arriving at the scene, experts from the Fisheries Administration and WWF began to examine the carcass, which was still fresh, presuming the animal died around two days ago.
“A preliminary examination shows the dead dolphin was a male calf of about seven days old, weighed 12 kilogrammes and was 103 centimetres long. The experts said that no signs of physical injuries or gillnet entanglement have been identified on the carcass, suggesting that the animal died of an unknown cause,” it said.
WWF said that they have now transferred the carcass to be preserved and they will carry out necessary sample collections for further investigation in order to determine the cause of death. Entanglement in gillnets and illegal fishing practices are among the major known causes of deaths in adult dolphins.
“The cause of calf mortality remains unclear, raising serious concern over the future survival of the species,” WWF added.
It said that there is an urgent need to save the Mekong dolphin population from extinction after the latest census showed only 89 are still in Cambodia’s Mekong river.
Last week, the carcass of a Mekong Irrawaddy dolphin, which may have died of old age, was also discovered in Tboung Khmum province. The dead dolphin was an adult female of about 27 years old and 2.2 metres long. Experts assume that the dolphin strayed away from its home area in Kratie and died of old age.
October 24 was International Freshwater Dolphin day. The Fisheries Administration and WWF urgently called for stronger and more collective action from the government, communities and all current and potential partners.
Credited: Khmer Times
