Irrawaddy dolphins functionally extinct in Laos Event

Der stark bedrohte Irawadi-Delfin hat seinen Kampf ums Überleben in Laos offenbar verloren. Der WWF erklärte die Art in dem ostasiatischen Land für de-facto ausgestorben. Allein in diesem Jahr sei die Population, die in Laos ausschließlich im Mekong-Fluss beheimatet ist, erneut um die Hälfte geschrumpft auf nun lediglich drei Individuen.

The population of critically endangered Mekong River Dolphins (Irrawaddy Dolphins) in the Cheuteal trans-boundary pool between southern Laos and northern Cambodia has shrunk by 50 per cent this year alone and the population is functionally extinct in Laos, according to WWF. WWF survey teams from Laos and Cambodia conducted a dolphin abundance survey and confirmed the current number and breeding status of the dolphins in the transboundary pool. Down to just three individuals – from six just earlier this year – there is now little hope for a reversal of the situation, as the small population is no longer viable.