They have powerful flippers and tail flukes and a modified hump in place of a dorsal fin. Male botos sometimes beat the water with branches or grasses held in their mouth , or even hold live turtles aloft, in courtship displays aimed at impressing females. Females give birth to one calf after a pregnancy of 11 to 15 months. The young nurse for more than a year, staying close to their mothers. Humans are the only threat to Amazon river dolphins, hunting them for catfish bait or trapping them accidentally in gill nets.
Traditional Amazonian belief holds that the boto is a magical being able to take the form of a human and come ashore—with a hat to hide its telltale blowhole. Amazon dolphins Inia geoffrensis bear little resemblance to our beloved Flipper.
How did they get to the Amazon—and why are the males sometimes pink? All rights reserved. Amazon river dolphins boto The pink river dolphins of the Amazon use sonar to locate their prey hiding in the river. Common Name: Amazon river dolphins. Scientific Name: Inia geoffrensis. Diet: Carnivore. Size: Up to 8 feet long. Weight: Up to pounds. Current Population Trend: Unknown. Tracking Dolphins Amazon dolphins Inia geoffrensis bear little resemblance to our beloved Flipper.
Share Tweet Email. In South American culture however, it is considered a mythical figure that has been revered and reviled in equal measure. In reality, the pink river dolphin is one of two species of endangered freshwater dolphins that are found in similar locations throughout the Amazon and Orinoco river basins.
Inia geffrensis, or the pink river dolphin is different from the grey or tuxuci Sotalia fluviatilis river dolphins, which bear more resemblance to marine dolphins with their bottlenoses and habit of leaping out of the water.
As its name suggests, the pink river dolphin is most recognizable by its unique color making it a huge draw for explorers of the Peruvian Amazon. The dolphins are actually born gray and slowly turn pink as they age.
Male dolphins are strikingly pinker than their female counterparts; the coloration thought to be a product of scar tissue resulting from rough games or fighting over conquests. However, their final color can be influenced by their behavior, capillary placement, diet, and exposure to sunlight; with brighter pinks attracting more attention from the females.
These river dolphins can sport markings that range from mostly gray with some pink spots, to full flamingo pink. The Amazon pink river dolphin is the largest and smartest out of the five freshwater species.
A full-grown dolphin can grow up to 9 feet 2. Their diet is the most diverse amongst toothed whales especially during the wet season , consisting of more than 53 species, including piranhas. Noise from vessels disturbs mammals that rely on underwater sound for navigation and communication. The ships also pose the physical threat of striking the creatures, injuring and even killing them. The rugged southern coastline of Hong Kong's outlying Lantau island provides shelter from typhoons and predators for the dolphins.
Conservationists are campaigning to expand an existing marine park to better protect the vulnerable species. They've been around here for millennia. More from Biology and Medical. Use this form if you have come across a typo, inaccuracy or would like to send an edit request for the content on this page. For general inquiries, please use our contact form. For general feedback, use the public comments section below please adhere to guidelines. Your feedback is important to us. However, we do not guarantee individual replies due to the high volume of messages.
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By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Home Biology Ecology. The population of pink dolphins has fallen by percent in the past 15 years, in what is one of the world's most industrialised estuaries. Factfile on Chinese white dolphins, also known as Hong Kong pink dolphins.
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