Amazon dolphin

With a length of up to 3 m and a weight of up to 185 kg, the Amazon dolphin (Inia geoffrensis) is the largest river dolphin and it lives in the rainforest. It has a gray-pink body. Its coloration can vary depending on age, clarity of the water, temperature and location. Amazon river dolphins have a narrow and long beak, which has tactile hairs. The eyes are very small. Instead of a dorsal fin, the animals have a dorsal bar that can only be seen when surfacing.

The river dolphin Inia geoffrensis is a slow swimmer and not as eager to jump as marine dolphins. Amazon river dolphins are well adapted to life in the flooded jungle because, unlike their relatives, they have a mobile neck and large, paddle-shaped flippers. They locate their prey in murky water using sonar systems.

In the rainforest in the Cuyabeno Nature Reserve in Ecuador, they are still frequently seen, especially in larger rivers during the dry season (October-February), but in smaller rivers and flooded jungle during the rainy season (March-September).

After a gestation period of about 12 months, a young is born. Their life expectancy is about 20 years.


Dangers

Industrialization, extraction of raw materials (e.g. oil production in the rainforest) and the associated changes to their habitats, as well as the progressive pollution of the waters pose a major threat to this species. Threat status IUCN Red List


YAQU PACHA works in Venezuela together with PROYECTO SOTALIA on the protection of the Amazon dolphins. Learn more about dolphin conservation at our Amazon Dolphin Project


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