Endangered Indus dolphins show signs of revival in the Beas
NEW DELHI: There are between five and 11 Indus river dolphins in the 185-km stretch of the Beas that flows through Punjab, but the sighting of young calves, however, signalled a breeding population and hope for revival, according to the first organised survey by World Wildlife Federation (WWF)-India and the state government.
This subspecies of the South Asian River Dolphin was once found in the major tributaries of the Indus that flow through India, but is now found only in Beas, the survey, which was released on Wednesday, explained. “Ultimately the aim is to dev- elop a conservation strategy for Indus river dolphins,” said Suresh Babu, director, rivers, wetlands and water policy at WWF-India. “It is a small population,we need to ensure adequate environmental flow for the river and dolphin, and protect their prey base.”
“The exciting thing is that we found few weeks-old calves, indicating it is a breeding population,” he added. The Indus river dolphin (Platanista gangetica ssp. minor) is a subspecies of the South Asian River Dolphin, which includes the Gangetic river dolphin. The subspecies is endangered and is placed in Schedule I of India’s Wildlife Protection Act.
The Indus river dolphin is the national marine mammal of Pakistan and the Gangetic dolphin is the national aquatic animal of India. “The threats faced by the Gangetic river dolphin and the Indus river dolphin are different because the population of Indus river dolphins is small and isolated. An accident can wipe out the entire population,” said Qamar Qureshi, a scientist at Wildlife Institute of India.
The South Asian River Dolphins are also called the blind river dolphins because they don’t have functional sight, and navigate and catch prey through echolocation using a biological sonar.
There are only four dolphin species that live in freshwater. The Indus river dolphin is believed to have emerged after the Tethys Sea dried up they were compelled to adapt to and live in rivers.
Traditionally, the dolphins were found in the Indus and its five tributaries Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, Chenab and Jhelum. But its range reduced by 80% compared to the late 1800s, with the Indian population limited to Beas.
Since Beas is circumscribed by the Pong Dam in Himachal and Harike barrage in Punjab, this population is isolated from members in Indus in Pakistan, where their number is about 1,800. A step to protect the habitat was taken last year, when the Beas in Punjab was declared a conservation reserve.
› The exciting thing is that we found few weeksold (dolphin) calves, indicating it is a breeding population. SURESH BABU, director, WWF-India