GANGETIC DOLPHINS

About: 

• Common Name: Ganges river dolphin, Blind dolphin, Side-swimming dolphin, Susu, South Asian River Dolphin.
  
  
• Scientific Name: Platanista Gangetica.
  
  
• Habitat: Inhabits the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna and Karnaphuli-Sangu river systems of Nepal, India, and Bangladesh. 
  
  
• Gangetic dolphins are one of the four freshwater dolphins in the world. The other three are
  • Baiji – of the Yangtze river in China,
    
    
  • Bhulan – of the Indus in Pakistan and
    
    
  • Boto – of the Amazon River in Latin America.
    
    
  
  
  
• Physical description:
  • Although its eye lacks a lens (this species is also referred to as the "blind dolphin"), the dolphin still uses its eye to locate itself;
    
    
  • The dolphin has the peculiarity of swimming on one side so that its flipper trails the muddy bottom. This behaviour is understood to help it to find food. That’s why it is also called as “Side-swimming dolphin”;
    
    
  • Being a mammal, the Ganges River dolphin cannot breathe in the water and must surface every 30-120 seconds. Because of the sound it produces when breathing, the animal is popularly referred to as the 'Susu'; 
    
    
  
  
  
• IUCN status: Endangered. 
  
  
• Population: 1,200-1,800 individuals.
  
  
• Steps by government of India:
  • Ministry of Environment and Forest declared Gangetic dolphin as National Aquatic Animal of India.
    
    
  • Also, a stretch of Ganges river between Sultanganj and Kahlgaon in Bihar has been declared as dolphin sanctuary and named Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary (VGDS).