Amazon: Where are the dolphins?
Fourteen scientists of different nationalities went on board the Anaconda, a three-level vessel that belongs to the Corporación para el Desarrollo Sostenible del Sur de la Amazonia (Corpoamazonia), traveling all along Putumayo’s river in the Amazon region of Colombia.
During the days aboard La Anaconda, scientists found several factors that potentially threaten the aquatic ecosystems present in the basin of the river. Therefore, regional species, such as pink river dolphins, are in danger.
To better understand the situation, it’s important to acknowledge that river dolphins are an excellent indicator of the conservation status of aquatic ecosystems. They are representative species that commonly inhabit many well-balanced habitats, so their presence indicates that the area is healthy or that it hasn’t been modified by humans.
The number of pink river dolphins seen by the scientists is astonishingly low. As a result, they concluded that in the Amazon region there are various problems that directly affect the entire ecosystem, like hydroelectric plants, tourism, fishing, and deforestation are the main reasons, according to Enrique Crespo , Latin American Coordinator of the Especialistas de Cetáceos IUCN group and Senior Researcher at the Colegio de Investigaciones Científicas de Argentina.
LatinAmerican Post | Manuela Pulido
Copy edited by Susana Cicchetto
