Daily Times

KARACHI: A team of 20 surveyors from WWF-Pakistan and experts from partner organisations recently conducted a survey to determine the presence of the endangered Indus River dolphin, far north of its range from Jinnah to Chashma Barrage in the Indus.

This is the second year in a row that WWF-Pakistan has conducted assessments to investigate the status of this species in different locations within its historical population range.

The ultimate objective of these assessments is to help make concrete decisions for conservation planning. The Indus river dolphins is an endangered freshwater cetacean in the Indus river system. The species are found in five sub-populations separated by barrages on the Indus River.

“The survey was conducted along an area more than 70km long of the Indus river, which is close to the foothills of the Himalayas, which has not been surveyed since 2006,” said WWF-Pakistan Director of Wildlife Dr Babar Khan.

He further stated that previous surveys estimated less than five dolphins within this river section and this was the smallest known sub-population of the species. Therefore, concern arose that because of the small size of the population, it will likely be wiped-out in the near future. “The survey methodology was consistent with the assessments done since 2001, which helps to obtain reliable and comparable data”, he added.

The survey revealed that that not a single dolphin was present between the two barrages and the assertions of the local communities suggest that dolphins may already have been wiped out between Jinnah and Chashma barrages. These results support the previous hypothesis that the Indus River dolphin is rapidly disappearing from the upper Indus.

Among seven potential factors which may have contributed to the eradication of the Indus river Dolphin population, low discharge of the river during the dry season and habitat fragmentation by irrigation barrages have been identified as the main contributors. Reduced flow has a direct impact on the dolphins as it limits the spatial orientation of their habitat and changes the depth of the river and the flow velocity and temperature of the water.

According to Director General Punjab Wildlife and Parks Department Khalid Ayaz Khan, the survey was part of the continuous research efforts critical to facilitate conservation policy making for endangered species, like the Indus river dolphin, based on scientific evidences.

He also appreciated the collaborative efforts of WWF-Pakistan, Punjab Wildlife Department and other stakeholders as the collection of this data is vital to the formulation of conservation policies. He also added that the department has initiated a development project along the Indus river with key interventions to establish three dolphin rescue and monitoring stations on the Indus River, a satellite telemetry study and translocation of stranded dolphins to the stretch of the Indus between Jinnah and Chashma Barrages.

A comprehensive dolphin population assessment was carried out by WWF-Pakistan in March to April 2017, covering the 800 km stretch that includes the three largest dolphin sub-populations between Chashma– and Sukkur Barrages. The survey recorded a marked increase in the population of the species.

There has been much focus on the largest sub-populations of Indus dolphins that are present downstream in Sindh and lower Punjab, and these populations appear to be increasing in abundance. However, the present distribution of the Indus River dolphin is about 80 percent less than what was determined in the 1870s.

According to Cetaceans Expert and member of IUCN Cetacean Specialists Group Dr Gill Braullik, the dolphin population is now confined within just 20 per cent of the range of their natural habitat due to the construction of numerous dams and barrages along the Indus River.

Lack of periodic and proper mechanisms of water quality assessment of the river further intensify the problem to identify those sections of the river which carry higher loads of waste.