Dugongs are a protected species. It is difficult to believe they are being
killed so ruthlessly in the idyllic islands of the Andamans.



Regards,

SAMEER BANERJEE



_____

From: andamanicobar@...
[mailto:andamanicobar@...] On Behalf Of VARDHAN
Sent: Tuesday, December 30, 2008 1:29 PM
To: andamanicobar@...; marinemammalsofindia@yahoogroups.com
Cc: Pankaj Sekhsaria
Subject: [andamanicobar] Dugong killed (Written by horrified tourists
whofirstsighted dead dugong at Neil Island)



Dear all,

This article has been written by a couple of foreign tourists who first
sighted dead dugong on beach no 3 at Neil Island. They have requested me to
forward it to a discussion forum. This is what they have to say about the
incident.

Written by Lucan Mulder & Nori Neumann

This Chrismas day another female dugong was butchered by fisherman, on beach
number 3, Neil Island. We found her chopped in half, lying in blood. Her
body did not even smell bad...so we knew she was freshly caught. Her body
was pierced with multiple spear wounds.Flesh was missing from her eye. Blood
still dripped onto the coral. Pieces of her were visibly hacked away by a
machete. Worse still a young calf was spotted by snorkellers on this very
beach only one week ago...this was probably its mother, we saw the mammary
glands under her two fins. There is not much chance of her calf's survival.
As with all marine mammals, mother/calf bonds are very strong. A baby dugong
needs its mother for at least 6 years. This latest killing has sent out a
very serious threat of extinction for the dugongs in these parts. And as
regular tourists we have been utterly shocked and horrified.
It seems that the culprits continue to obliterate the future of these
islands. Like it or not, admit it or not... the ocean's resources really are
the future. There is a large number of children on Neil Island.the future of
these children DEPENDS on a sustainable future from natural resources like
the coral reef, ocean life and dugong populations.
This is truly a terribly sad day for us. we feel a huge part of the natural
heritage and economic future of Neil Island has been stolen.

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