Pakistan creates 123-mile sanctuary for endangered Indus River Dolphin
Lahore: Pakistan has created a new wildlife sanctuary along 123 miles of the Indus River to protect the endangered Indus River Dolphin, one of the world’s rarest freshwater cetaceans.
The Punjnad Indus River Dolphin Sanctuary, notified by the Punjab government, safeguards the heart of the species’ habitat in Punjab. It connects with an existing protected area in neighboring Sindh province, creating about 249 miles of continuous protected habitat – roughly the length of New York State.
An estimated 440 dolphins live in the newly protected stretch. Only around 2,000 are believed to remain globally, fragmented across three stretches of the Indus totaling about 430 miles. The species has seen its range shrink sharply as dams and irrigation canals built to support economic growth cut off river access.
WWF-Pakistan, which has worked on dolphin conservation since the 1990s, said it will work with the federal and Punjab governments to develop a management plan for the sanctuary.
The group noted that as an apex predator, the dolphin’s survival depends on the health of the entire river ecosystem – protecting the dolphin could help protect the whole riverine environment.
