Dolphin Population Doubles In Odisha; Substantial Rise In Chilika & Rajnagar Mangrove

Bhubaneswar: The brackish water of Chilika Lagoon in Odisha has seen a substantial jump in the population of Irrawaddy Dolphins since last year. As against 146 in 2020, the number rose to 162 in 2021.

Another 26 bottle-nose dolphins were sighted in the lake during the census carried out by Chilika Development Authority (CDA) and State Wildlife Wing in February.

This is being attributed to the clearing of illegal prawn gheris in the lake and restrictions on tourism during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which gave the species inviolated space.

According to the 2021 annual census, there are 544 dolphins and cetaceans of three species in the state with 188 in Chilika lake and 342 in Rajnagar Mangrove (Wildlife) Division. The number was 233 with 163 in Chilika and 62 in Rajnagar in 2020.

This year, 281 humpback and 22 bottle-nose dolphins were sighted in the mangrove ecosystem. The division, however, saw a drop in the number of Irrawaddy dolphins from 60 in 2020 to 39 in 20201.

The census was also conducted in Puri, Berhampur, Bhadrak and Balasore. Eight Irrawaddy dolphins were sighted in Bhadrak, 4 bottle-nose dolphins in Puri and another 2 in Balasore.