[The One]
Dugong, or seacow
♥
POOF ! THAT'S HOW FAST THE LAST DUGONG WILL EVER BE SEEN BY THE HUMAN RACE . WITHOUT YOUR HELP , DUGONGS ALL OVER THE WORLD MIGHT FACE THIS DREADFUL FATE . THANKFULLY , ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS AROUND THE WORLD HAD HELPED THESE COY CREATURES TO SURVIVE THIS ORDEAL . RESEARCHES DONE HAS SHOWN STARTLING STATISTICS THAT REPRESENT THE NUMBER OF DUGONGS LEFT TODAY . SO , LETS MAKE AN EFFORT TO SAVE THESE SEA MAMMALS ...
Thursday, April 26, 2007
The dugongs, which can reach up to 400 kilograms (880 pounds) in weight and four metres (13 feet) in length and whose distant ancestor is the ancient elephant, used to be abundant in Thailand's waters.Unfortunately hunting, destructive fishing practices and environmental degradation have made them a rare sight, and now creeping mass tourism and development are threatening the future of this gentle species.
"It is very difficult to see a good future for dugong, because there are many threats and many problems for the degradation of costal resources," says Pisit Charnsnoh, founder of local conservation organisation Yadfon.
A survey of dugong by the Department of Marine and Costal Resources last November found about 200 in the Andaman Sea, and just 50 in the Gulf of Thailand.
Although there are no benchmark figures for a comparison, as no one surveyed the animals in the past, marine experts agree there has been a drastic decline in numbers.
Phuket Marine Biological Centre's Kanjana Adulyanukosol, who carried out the survey, says 150 dugong live in Trang, where sea grass, the dugong's preferred food, is still abundant and development has been restrained.
When he first arrived in Trang in 1985, fishermen were using dynamite, poison and push-nets which scrape along the sea bed ripping up everything in their path, and dugong were frequently turning up dead on the beaches.
When he first arrived in Trang in 1985, fishermen were using dynamite, poison and push-nets which scrape along the sea bed ripping up everything in their path, and dugong were frequently turning up dead on the beaches.
[Nothing's gonna change my world]6:31 PM
