yego.me
💡 Stop wasting time. Read Youtube instead of watch. Download Chrome Extension

Endangered River Dolphin Species’ Numbers On the Rise | National Geographic


2m read
·Nov 11, 2024

  • [Lindsay] Within the last couple of decades, this population has dramatically decreased in number. (camera clicks) There is one really close. (camera clicks) (gentle music)

  • They are incredibly challenging to study because when they do surface, they don't bring much of their bodies out of the water. So, it's difficult to identify individuals, and it's difficult to really discern what type of behavior is occurring. (gentle music)

  • [Lindsay] For photo identification of individual dolphins, for many, many species, we use the shape or the coloration that you find on the dorsal area, particularly the dorsal fin. The main cause of mortality for this species, previously, was entanglement in gillnets. The river guard program was put in place to remove the illegal gillnets which are being set on the dolphin sanctuary areas. So, the chances of dolphins becoming entangled in these nets, of course, are far less if they simply aren't there. (gentle music) (boat running)

  • [Lindsay] We're quite hopeful because we've seen a decrease in adult mortality, and there are several new calves in the last two years as well. The last population estimate was for 92 individual dolphins in the area, and that's an increase of 12 from the previous estimates. So, we're very hopeful that this population is now on the road to recovery.

  • [Lindsay] I think one of the most spectacular things about this particular population is the setting itself. They are such an integral part of the communities that live around the river. The people that live in the Mekong area rely entirely on the river habitat as do the dolphins. The dolphins and the humans, it's all part of one big system that's really clear to see. (gentle music)

More Articles

View All
How To Be The Next Elon Musk According To Elon Musk
So, uh, one of the I think most common questions I hear young people, ambitious young people, ask is, “I want to be the next Elon Musk; how do I do that?” Um, obviously the next Elon Musk will work on very different things than you did, but what have you…
A Mexican Wolf Pup’s Journey into the Wild | Podcast | Overheard at National Geographic
Foreign [Music] This is what it sounds like to explore New Mexico’s Gila Wilderness on horseback. On a recent assignment for National Geographic, I got to venture deep into the Gila with a photographer, podcast producer, and a backcountry guide. The Gila …
The Cognitive Tradeoff Hypothesis
This is Inuyama, Japan, a historic city home to Japan’s oldest original wooden castle. It is also home to Kyoto University’s Primate Research Institute. Here, a group of chimpanzees have been trained to play a game that exposes something shocking about th…
Sailing through the Ice Gauntlet: The Maze of Icebergs | Explorer: Lost in the Arctic
This was a town. Some kind of a whaling station. Totally abandoned now. Look at this. This is what I’ve been looking for right here. An iron bollard in the shore, where Franklin tied up their ships. And this was the last anchorage for the Franklin expedit…
Operation Rocket - Smarter Every Day 39
Hey, it’s me Destin. Welcome to Smarter Every Day. So, I am very passionate about rockets. You probably know that by now. But the reason I am is because my grandfather worked for NASA, and he introduced me to rockets. I knew from that moment when he intro…
How to Eliminate Single-Use Plastics on Vacation | National Geographic
[Music] Made it through the first leg of the trip. It is now 9:00 a.m. I have been up for quite a few hours, and there are no snacks that I could buy because everything is wrapped in plastic. Hi, I’m Marie McCrory with National Geographic Travel. Recentl…