Dolphin found dead in Ctg canal connected to Halda river

A Gangetic dolphin (Platanista gangetica) was found dead in a canal connected to Halda river, in Hathazari upazila of Chattogram, this morning.

Mohammad Ali, a local journalist who went to spot, told The Daily Star that locals spotted the mammal in Chankhali canal which ends in Halda river.

The body of the dolphin was bloated when it was found -- meaning, it died in the river and was washed into the canal with tide, he added.

The 7.5 ft long female dolphin, weighing 120 kg, seemed to have died a natural death, said Professor Manzoorul Kibria, eminent Halda researcher.

A total of 28 dolphins died from 2017 to 2020 in Halda. This is first such death this year, he added.

The Gangetic dolphin is categorised as "critically endangered" by International Union for Conservation of Nature.