Scientists have reported that the manatee (also known as sea cow or dugong) has functionally gone extinct in China due to widespread habitat destruction and hunting.
According to Professor Samuel Turvey from the ZSL Institute of Zoology, hunting and ship strikes on marine animals are among the reasons the manatee has gradually disappeared from China.
He is one of the authors of a study on the presence of manatees in China, published in the Royal Society Open Science journal.
“Our new research provides strong evidence of the disappearance of yet another aquatic mammal species in China. Sadly, once again, this results from unsustainable human activities,” Turvey told the Guardian.
The manatee has functionally gone extinct in China. (Photo: Rawpixel Pic).
Manatees are particularly reliant on seagrass – a marine habitat that is rapidly declining due to water pollution and human impacts along coastlines.
Turvey noted that seagrass beds are also vulnerable to the process of “eutrophication” – when algal blooms form due to increased nutrients in the water from human activities, such as wastewater.
This “reduces the amount of light that penetrates the seawater, thereby hindering the photosynthesis process of seagrass,” he explained.
Professor Turvey described these findings as a “wake-up call,” urging for prioritization of conservation efforts in China.
Since 1988, China has classified the manatee as a level one national key protected animal, which is the highest level of protection. However, since 2008, there has been no documentation indicating the presence of manatees in China.
