More than 10,000 endangered whales and dolphins of six species have made the Bay of Bengal and the Sundarbans estuary a safe home, a month long survey reveals.
A group of Bangladeshi wildlife scientists headed by Dr Anisuzzaman Khan carried out the survey and recently revealed that the Bay is still a good abode of aquatic animals like whales, and dolphins commonly known as cetaceans.
The team found a good number of cetaceans including Irrawaddy dolphins, fin-less porpoises, bottle-nosed dolphins, Indo-Pacific humpbacks and Ganges River dolphins while cruising the part of the Bay in Bangladesh.
Although the Ganges River dolphins in the inland rivers are under quite a lot of stress the ones inhabiting the estuaries of Sundarbans were comparatively safer.
“Bangladesh should feel proud for harbouring such a huge number of endangered cetaceans,” said Dr Anisuzzaman in a statement sent to The Daily Star yesterday terming the Bay of Bengal as a global hotspot for the endangered aquatic mammals.
Courtesy of The Daily Star
