Irrawaddy dolphin

"Irrawaddy dolphins were once found throughout the Mekong from the Lao-Cambodia border down the Mekong to the delta in Vietnam and in Tonle Sap. The population and range of the dolphins has declined greatly in the last 39 years . . . The Irrawaddy Dolphin’s habitat preferences for freshwater and near shore marine environments make the species especially vulnerable to intensive human use and abuse . . . Historically, populations were decimated by hunting for meat and oil, accidental drowning in nets, explosives fishing, and even being used as target practice by various armies during Cambodia’s recent troubled periods. Today, accidental drowning in gillnets is the main threat to adult Irrawaddy dolphins in the Mekong, especially with fishing becoming increasing intensive and cheap nylon gillnets replacing thicker traditional nets that could be detected by dolphin echolocation." Due to the devastating threats to the irrawaddy, the species has declined to a mere 89 individuals remaining along the North Eastern Cambodia stretch of the Mekong River.