Human activities and pollution: what threatens India's sea cows, Pg15

Key Highlights:

• A recent IUCN report highlights growing threats to dugong populations in India, particularly in the Gulf of Kutch and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
• Dugongs, also known as sea cows, are listed as vulnerable by the IUCN and receive high protection under India's Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
• The primary threats to dugongs include habitat degradation, entanglement in fishing nets, and accumulation of toxic metals from industrial discharge and agricultural runoff.
• The Tamil Nadu government established the Dugong Conservation Reserve in Palk Bay in 2022 to protect seagrass meadows and dugongs.

Detailed Insights:

• Dugongs are herbivorous marine mammals that play a vital role in maintaining healthy seagrass ecosystems through grazing, which stimulates carbon storage and releases nutrients for other marine species.
• The dugong population in India has drastically reduced, with estimates ranging from 250 to 450 individuals, due to human activities and habitat degradation.
• Toxic elements like arsenic, cadmium, chromium, mercury, and lead have been found in dugong tissues, entering the sea through industrial discharge, agricultural runoff, and untreated wastewater.
• The slow reproductive rate of dugongs, with females giving birth only once in several years, exacerbates their vulnerability to extinction.
• The national dugong recovery programme, in partnership with Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, aims to conserve dugongs, but stronger enforcement of regulations and threat reduction are needed.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Dugong: Herbivorous marine mammal, also known as a sea cow, that inhabits shallow coastal waters and feeds on seagrass.
• Seagrass Ecosystem: Underwater meadows that provide food and habitat for various marine species, playing a crucial role in carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling.
• Bycatch: The unintentional capture of non-target species, such as dugongs, during fishing activities.