There are many animals in the world that are in serious danger of becoming extinct forever, gradually ending global biodiversity and therefore the ecosystem; in this segment those dolphins in danger of extinction will be detailed, do not forget to share with your loved ones and invite them to become aware of the care of the planet.
endangered dolphins
Throughout the world there are many species that have disappeared never to return, while others are threatened due to the considerable decrease in their population, such is the case of the White Tiger, but not only this one but many endangered aquatic animalsdue to air and water pollution.
Many dolphins do not escape this sad reality, being threatened by many circumstances that considerably decrease their population, sometimes due to the actions of human beings, others by their predators, but in any of the cases the result is the same, dolphins in danger of extinction.
Their habitat has been gradually destroyed, there is a lot of pollution in the seas, the continuous hunting of these animals has also been a product of their current status, all due to lack of Environmental awareness and forceful actions by the competent authorities.
Dynamite is one of the most used elements to kill many members of these animals, they are illegal fishing practices; Others get caught in the nets, injuring their swimming limbs, but there are other accidental factors, such as colliding with large vessels that lead to their death.
But also in the greatness of the oceans they face great dangers, being attacked by larger animals, but this situation is minor; since the data reflected by specialists establish that 95% of the disappearance of these animals is the product of human acts.
How many dolphins are there on the planet?
In the world there is a great diversity of dolphin species, at present it is established that there are at least forty-one species alive, some of them saltwater and others freshwater; Although they are aquatic animals, there are certain characters that have a certain similarity with terrestrial animals, such as those that can be seen below:
- They have a highly developed brain: Like many other mammals, they have a fairly deep nervous system. Furthermore, what most amazes specialists and everyone who meets one of them is the fact of such a high level of intelligence and their memory capacity.
Something with which it is not similar with other species is the way of sleeping, since, although it seems strange, dolphins never sleep completely, but only rest one hemisphere while the other remains active, so they continue swimming and being alert to any danger that may be encountered in the ocean.
- Your lung breathing: yes, they have lungs to be able to breathe, they take in air when they come to the surface, doing it through that hole that can be seen above their head, this hole is connected to the trachea, which is in charge of carrying the air to the bronchi and from there to the lungs.
- At birth they have hair: It is something that can be observed in mammals, but, although it may seem strange to us, dolphins at birth possess it, even when they lack it in their adult stage, because in the sea it could cause problems; those they have at birth gradually fall off until there is that smooth layer that you feel when you touch them.
- They are viviparous: these are developed in the womb of the mother, then when it is born it will be dependent on the mother until it reaches a certain period of maturity where it can be shed, the first thing is to go out for air with the help of its mother, but she must also give it milk.
types of dolphins
It is considered that the groups of dolphins are very different, there is not much homogeneity in this group of animals, of course, they maintain certain characteristics with respect to their life in the sea, but at the morphological level there are really few similarities, which can be noticed when see several of them together.
All dolphins belong to the same order and family classification, but there are two types, freshwater and saltwater; It is important to note that they have teeth that are the same as each other and in a row, which assumes their carnivorous diet.
Below is the list of existing dolphins, both freshwater and saltwater; It should be noted that the former have a defect and that is that they are often almost completely blind, their snout is also longer and thinner, but they have the ability to locate by means of echoes, which is surprising:
- Heaviside's Dolphin (Cephalorhynchus heavisidii)
- Pilot whale (Globicephala melas)
- Coastal common dolphin (Delphinus capensis)
- Short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus)
- Risso's Dolphin (Grampus griseus)
- Commerson's Dolphin (Cephalorhynchus commersonii)
- Hector's Dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori)
- Pygmy killer whale (Feresa attenuata)
- Fraser's dolphin (Lagenodelphis hosei)
- Chilean dolphin (Cephalorhynchus eutropia)
- Dusky or Fitzroy's dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus)
- Baiji (Lipotes vexillifer)
- Coastal common dolphin (Delphinus capensis)
- The Northern Finless Dolphin (Lissodelphis borealis)
- Atlantic dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus)
- The southern finless dolphin (Lissodelphis peronii)
- Oceanic common dolphin (Delphinus delphis)
- The Irrawaddy river beluga dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris)
- Pacific white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens)
- Heinsohn's beluga dolphin (Orcaella heinsohni)
- White beaked dolphin (Lagenorhynchus albirostris)
- Common killer whale (Orcinus orca)
- Crusader Dolphin (Lagenorhynchus cruciger)
- The long-beaked spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris)
- Atlantic humpback dolphin (Sousa teuszii)
- The narrow-beaked dolphin (Steno bredanensis)
- Southern or Antarctic dolphin (Lagenorhynchus australis)
- The Indo-Pacific dolphin (Tursiops aduncus)
- Tucuxi (Sotalia fluviatilis)
- Burrunan Dolphin (Tursiops australis)
- The tropical spotted or saddled dolphin (Stenella attenuata)
- Bottlenose or bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus)
- The melon-headed dolphin (Peponocephala electra)
- False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens)
- Silver Dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei)
- The Hong Kong pink river dolphin (Sousa chinensis)
- Ganges dolphin (Platanista gangetica)
- Coastal (Sotalia guianensis)
- Indus dolphin (Platanista minor)
- The short-beaked spinner dolphin (Stenella clymene)
- Amazon pink river dolphin (Inia geoffrensis)
- The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba)
- Bolivian dolphin (Inia boliviensis)
- The Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis)
- River dolphin (Araguaia Inia araguaiaensis)
Endangered Dolphin Species
Obtaining precise data on dolphins in danger of extinction is very difficult, since seeing and studying them becomes complicated due to the immensity of the rivers and oceans and their constant movement.
However, there is a confirmed list of endangered dolphins, such is the following:
irrawadi river dolphin
Scientifically called "orcaella brevirostris", it lives in the oceans near coastal areas, and also usually gets quite close to the flow areas of rivers or the estuary.
gangetic dolphin
At the scientific level, it is called Platanista gangetica, which is established as an endangered animal within its area of origin, that is, the Ganges, but this species can be found in other flows.
Hector's Dolphin
According to the IUCN it is an endangered species, which at the scientific level is called "Cephalorhynchus hectori", its threat is currently critical.
pink amazon river dolphin
It is a rare animal, due to its colors, scientifically it is called Inia geoffrensis, which is not only found in the Amazon, but it is also common to find one of them in nearby tributaries, and the fact that why is the pink dolphin endangered It is by human work.
indus dolphin
It is a river dolphin, which today is considered critically endangered for human reasons, pollution and hunting, scientifically its name is "Platanista minor".
the biji
There are no accurate and empirical data on this information, however, there are certain suspicions that this animal has become completely extinct, but the IUCN establishes it as a critical threat.
Why are dolphins in danger of extinction?
As has already been mentioned on several occasions throughout the article, the most frequent thing is that the extinction of both dolphins and other animals is the product of human actions and the lack of awareness to protect our home; in a few cases it is due to the increase in predators or other dangers of the seas.
The most common thing is that those species that today have been classified as critically endangered will disappear tomorrow and there will be no return, affecting the natural cycle of life on earth, which in the long term will affect any living being. alive.
The dolphins of the ocean tend to continuously face the gillnets, easily getting caught in them, many times they cannot escape and die in the process or are so injured by the struggle that they end up losing energy and then their lives; these networks have been banned in many countries.
But not only that, but, in addition to this, the decrease in their food, since unbridled fishing decreases fish or other forms of their food; On the other hand, there is the strong pollution of the oceans, with industrial elements that do not allow an optimal and pleasant life for these animals.
What to do if I find a stranded dolphin?
In recent years it has become very common to find dolphins on the coast, they are stranded, at which time they hardly have the breath of life, however, sometimes there are certain possibilities of life for these animals, for which you must help them in measure of your possibilities.
The first thing you should do is investigate quickly, if there are specialized centers for the rescue and return to their habitat of dolphins in the area, if so, you will have to resort to them in the shortest possible time, if on the contrary there are not, Call the emergency services, they will surely have certain help teams.
For now, you should put sea water on the animal so that it stays hydrated. Do not try to return it to the sea on your own, this should only be determined by a veterinarian, it also prevents people from crowding around it.
Dolphin Threats Related to Man
- There are more dolphins in captivity: They are caught with the intention of scientific research or also for trade, since in aquariums they are used for profit, which often leads to their death.
- Chemical contamination without brakes: Elements such as oil in the sea, metals and other chemical products are a great threat to dolphins, leading them to consume products that are not suitable for them, or plants and animals that are equally contaminated, leading to their death in a short time. long term.
- Noise pollution: The engines of the boats, extractive elements, are generators of noise pollution that affect both the dolphins and other animals such as the Blue whale.
- Traumatic injuries: When they get entangled in shark or fishing nets, as well as when they are caged, colliding with boats, all of these generate trauma and a loss in their natural quality of life.
