Study flags chemical contamination risk to endangered Gangetic dolphins

THE GANGETIC DOLPHIN POPULATION HAS DECLINED BY OVER 50 PER CENT SINCE 1957, AND THEIR RANGE HAS SHRUNK BY NEARLY A QUARTER, DESPITE BEING DESIGNATED AS INDIA'S NATIONAL AQUATIC ANIMAL

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

A scientific study has revealed alarming levels of toxic chemicals in the Ganga river, threatening the health and survival of the endangered Gangetic dolphins.

Published in the journal 'Heliyon', the study by the Wildlife Institute of India found that these freshwater mammals are being exposed to a hazardous cocktail of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) through their diet.

The researchers analysed the dietary exposure risks of 39 EDCs in fish species consumed by Gangetic dolphins.

The findings indicate significant bioaccumulation of industrial pollutants such as di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP) in the prey base of the dolphins.