The Phnom Penh Post —
Dolphin conservation groups and government officials are expressing grave concerns over the decline in the number of dolphins present at the Chheu Teal trans-boundary pool of the Mekong River at the Laos-Cambodia border, saying that if this alarming trend is not halted, it will lead to the extinction of this important mammal.
The joint press release on October 24 stated that the isolated population of Irrawaddy dolphins residing in the Chheu Teal trans-boundary pool is on the verge of disappearing.
Periodic photo-identification surveys indicate that the number of dolphins fell from seven in 2009 to six in 2012 and then three in 2018 and now just one dolphin remains there in 2021.
The Dolphin population in the trans-boundary pool was small to begin with but it began sinking even lower due to changes to the Mekong River upstream from the pool, the limited presence of law enforcement around the trans-boundary pool and natural deaths to due aging.