What happened to Waddy?

Locally called Lampasut by Tagbanuas; Lumba-lumba by Tagalogs and Visayans, this unusual-looking dolphin got its name from the Ayeyarwady River (also called Irrawaddy River) in Myanmar.

First identified by Sir Richard Owen in 1866, Irrawaddy dolphins usually travel in pods of six or fewer, but can group together up to 25 individuals when they fish in deep pools of water. They live in varied habitats, actually. Being euryhaline, they can adapt to varying water salt concentrations, allowing them to dwell and swim in lakes, rivers, coral reefs, and even as far as the ocean’s pelagic zone.

Irrawaddy dolphins appearance

At birth, they have a length of at least 3.3 feet (as tall as a school-age child) and grow up to 9 feet weighing 200 kilos as adults (now that is heavy). Their flexible rounded head and short beak distinguish them from other commonly seen dolphins, like their cousin bottle-noses, and makes them look like mini belugas. 

Despite looking like a beluga, their Orcaella genus (meaning snubfin dolphins), relates them closer to Orcas of the Orcinus genus. Don’t be fooled by their appearance and innocent-looking smile, because Irrawaddy dolphins, scientifically named Orcaella brevirostris, have 12-19 narrow peg-like teeth on each side of its jaw, which helps them to eat as they forage for fish and other creatures found in their habitat. They are not picky eaters and will take advantage of their euryhalinity to follow the tides, moving inward and outward of river mouths and estuaries, wherever their prey may be.

Dolphins’ activities

These playful creatures often steer clear of boats and dive instantly when threatened. Using their broad triangle, paddle-like pectoral fins and small triangular dorsal fins, they can swim as fast as 25 kilometers per hour.

Although they do not bow-ride as what most dolphins do, they tail slap, body rub, or roll to the side while waving a flipper as part of their play and social interaction. What you have just experienced is also one of its behaviors. Spy hopping is an activity of dolphins and whales wherein they vertically raise their head above the water to scan the surrounding area for danger. But compared to his cousins, Waddy has this peculiar habit of spitting streams of water from its mouth while spy hopping — you’re quite lucky to be water gunned by this playfully shy creature.

Current state

To date, Irrawaddy dolphins live in the marine and freshwater systems of Bangladesh, India, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Thailand. They are distributed in major populations and subpopulations throughout Southeast Asia.

They were first discovered in our country back in 1986 at the Malampaya Sound at Taytay, Palawan. Then in 2005, reports were received that Irrawaddy dolphins were found in Negros. And just this April of 2013, at least 20 of these creatures were found by chance in one sighting as reported by Mavic Matillano of the WWF Palawan Team. This discovery makes it one of the biggest sightings of a pod of Lampasuts.

Dolphins’ importance

The presence of Irrawaddy dolphins in our national waters indicates the richness of our marine and freshwater ecosystems, but these dolphins are currently facing the biggest threat of their lives yet — extinction.

Having a mortality rate of four individuals per year, the population of Irrawaddy dolphins is dwindling faster and faster. 

During their discovery in the Malampaya Sound, they once numbered as much as 77 dolphins in the Inner Sound alone. However, due to human-related activities, their population was reduced to 47 in 2007, 45 in 2005, and 42 in 2010. The most recent population estimate from research in the following years of 2011 and 2012 yielded only an estimate of 35 individuals.

The constant population reduction and unsustainable mortality rate of these creatures called the attention of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, thereby placing the whole population of Irrawaddy dolphins around the world on the IUCN Red List. 

Endangered classification

Classified as Endangered around the world and with its subpopulation in the Philippines as Critically Endangered, Irrawaddy dolphins enjoy the highest level of international conservation protection and all trades involving this mammal are prohibited.

However, despite the measures that the authorities placed, the numbers of these dolphins continue to drop due to anthropogenic activities that injure and kill them by accident. Entanglement in fishing gear like gillnets; habitat and estuary destruction brought by damming and alteration of freshwater flow; chemical and pollutant dumping in waters; and explosives and electrocution fishing constantly places them at the risk of extinction. 

These mammals, how intelligent they may be, are still sometimes caught accidentally in traps as livelihood efforts laid by humans overstep their use due to the density and destructiveness of materials utilized. In response, the World Wildlife Fund Philippines initiated the Malampaya Sound Research and Conservation Project in 2001, to sustainably manage the Malampaya Sound’s fisheries and to protect these dolphins in the area from gillnets and explosives.

Just this September 6, 2017, residents of the Malampaya Sound discovered a dead Irrawaddy dolphin with a net wrapped around its tail, which is a sign of by catching which led to its death by drowning. This is a call to give more attention to these dolphins and increase the involvement in the education of local fishermen and Local Government Units to employ sustainable fishing practices. It can’t be helped though, because these dolphins, desperate in search for food, sometimes approach net zones to eat fish and some are accidentally caught in the process.

The Irrawaddy dolphins are now an icon serving as the umbrella species of coastal area and estuary protection in the Philippines. Their existence is a reflection of the status of our waters, and with them swimming on the surface implies the abundance of resources below.

This article was written by Donnan Xaris Navarro from Palawan  as a final requirement of AYEJ.org and the US Embassy’s “Green Beat Islas: An Online Environmental Journalism Training.“

Featured photo from esquiremag.ph