Dolphins, Porpoises, and Whales - IUCN

of this project is to document the impact of Farakka
Barrage on the susu and its habitat, and to seek ways of
ameliorating any adverse impact. As a part of this analysis,
the implications of the proposed Ganges-Brahmaputra
link canal should also be considered. Collaboration with
other taxon-based SSC specialist groups is encouraged, as
many of the goals are complementary and this would promote
wise use of scarce financial resources.
Project 14
Assess the realized and potential effects of the
Flood Action Plan on river dolphins in Bangladesh
Haque (1992) and Hasan (1992) called attention to the
likely impact on river dolphins of ongoing large-scale
efforts to control drought and flooding in Bangladesh.
Commitments by Western governments to proceed with
the controversial Flood Action Plan, in spite of the offsetting
environmental and human costs, are periodically reinforced
by calamitous events that involve massive human
suffering and loss of life. A study that focuses on the
implications for susus and other aquatic wildlife is needed
by aid agencies, NGOs, and government officials if they
are to do a responsible job of environmental impact assessment.
Without a study specifically highlighting the potential
effects on river dolphins of factors such as depletion
of native prey species, erosion of important physiographic
features, altered flow and temperature regimes, population
fragmentation, human disturbance related to geotechnical
feasibility studies and construction activities, and
degradation of water quality, these are unlikely to be given
serious consideration in planning and amelioration.
Collaboration on this project with other taxon-based SSC
specialist groups would be advantageous.
Project 15
Establish a Nepal/India collaborative study and
conservation program for small subpopulations
of susus in Ganges tributaries (including "old"
Projects 28 and 29)
The four major Ganges tributaries that originate in Nepal
(Mahakali, Kamali, Narayani, and Sapta Kosi) have been
obstructed by barrages built in India near the India-Nepal
border. Small subpopulations of susus have been isolated
upstream of these barrages, and surveys in early
1993 suggest that only the Kamali, with 25-30 dolphins,
has a viable subpopulation (B.D. Smith, pers. comm.).
This subpopulation is further threatened by a planned high
dam at Chisapani Gorge (Smith 1993). Some of the infrastructure
for the dam site is already under construction.
The susu is one of a number of aquatic and terrestrial
species likely to be affected by Chisapani dam and associated
developments. In addition. Royal Bardia National
Park will be seriously degraded. All available data on
the susu subpopulation in the Karnali/Ghaghara River
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need to be considered in a re-assessment of the dam's
probable impact. If, as seems likely at present, the dam
is constructed, it will be important to have studies of dolphins
conducted at various phases during and after construction.
This could become the first opportunity for a
longitudinal analysis, with adequate pre- and post-development
data, of the effects on dolphins in downstream
reaches of a dammed river. Mitigation strategies are
needed to ensure the survival of dolphins in the river after
the dam has been constructed.
As a part of this project, the investigators should (1)
identify areas in Nepal and northern India that would be
suitable as international sanctuaries for dolphins and other
aquatic species, (2) develop management plans for such
areas, (3) examine the potential of aquaculture, stream
stocking, and habitat restoration strategies for increasing
stocks of prey species, and (4) develop a public education
program to promote the value of susus and dispel the myth
of the medicinal value of dolphin oil. This project is ideal
for collaboration with other taxon-based SSC specialist
groups such as those for otters and crocodiles.
Project 16
Evaluate the need for translocation to rescue
(or augment) subpopulations of susus that are
isolated by dams or otherwise at high risk from
local Ashing activities, pollution, etc.
Although the report of the meeting on river dolphins of
the Indian Subcontinent concluded that in situ approaches
to conservation were preferable to ex situ approaches, it
was also recognized that there may be instances in which
translocation could play a useful role. For example, a few
individual dolphins that have been isolated (or are about
to become isolated) by a dam or barrage may be judged not
to comprise a viable subpopulation. The best course may
be to capture these individuals and transport them to an
area of suitable habitat where they would augment another
subpopulation. Conversely, it could be decided that some
animals from a well-stocked area should be used to restock
an area from which dolphins have been extirpated
or in which the remaining subpopulation is too small to
be viable. This project may have important implications
for dolphin subpopulations in Nepal and Pakistan that are
obviously doomed (e.g. the Narayani and Sapta Kosi rivers
in Nepal—B.D. Smith, pers. comm.; the subpopulation(s)
upstream of Chashma Barrage in Pakistan—Khan and Niazi
1989). Augmented subpopulations may, in the long term,
provide source populations for re-establishing dolphins in
areas where they have been, or soon will be, extirpated.
The limited record of live-capturing river dolphins
needs to be carefully reviewed and assessed, and experience
with other cetaceans should be considered as well.
Several potential capture and release sites should be identified.
These sites should then be evaluated through a