Shrinking numbers of dugongs, the last remaining marine Sirenian on the planet, has stimulated a global wave to protect the surviving pockets of this species; one such pocket is the shallow waters off Northwest Sri Lanka.
Dugongs, also known as ‘sea cows,’ are huge and slow-moving creatures having peddle-like forelimbs, no hind limbs, and a horizontally flattened tail. They are strictly marine herbivorous mammals classified as ‘vulnerable to extinction,’ according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
“The population of dugongs is restricted to seagrass habitats, as they are reliant on seagrass for food. Then again, seagrass meadows are only found in less than 0.2 percent of the world’s oceans. Studies indicate that seagrass is disappearing at an alarming rate of 110 square kilo meters per year, largely, due to human activities. Dugongs have been reported in seagrass meadows found in the northwest of Sri Lanka, namely the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay,” IUCN Coastal and Marine Programme Coordinator Arjan Rajasuriya said.
Arjan was making an introductory presentation to a group of about 20 foreign and local media personnel during a field visit to Dugong and Seagrass Conservation Project sites in Kalpitiya, last week, accompanied with the UN Environment Programme officials.
Underground market for dugong meat
Kalpitiya is a famous tourist attraction for dolphin and whale watching, but lesser known for dugongs. Spotting a dugong is very rare, given its fast depleting numbers and the elusive nature.
Arjan, former Research Officer at the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), pointed out that dugong was highly threatened in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay, and added that the species was probably critically endangered.
“I worked in this area since 1988. My specialty was coral taxonomy. From 1988 to now, I have not seen a single live dugong. It comes to the surface of the water to breathe and then goes down. You would not know of its presence, unless you are very close to it,” he explained.
He pointed out that dugong are hunted for their meat, which has an underground market. “It faces direct threats from targeted hunting, incidental by-catch, and various destructive fishing practices, including trawling, indiscriminate netting, dynamite fishing, and a general over-exploitation of fishery resources,” he said.
“About 100-150 dugongs were taken annually in the Manner District in the 1950s. Nobody knows its current population. Dugongs are killed often, but not detected. Every two months or so, we lose an animal,” Arjan added.
Locally, dugongs are protected under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance, and internationally, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), to which Sri Lanka acceded in 1979, limits or bans the trade of derived products from it.
Moreover, Sri Lanka is signatory to the Dugong MoU since 2012, which aims to promote internationally coordinated actions to ensure the long-term survival of dugongs and their seagrass habitats throughout their extensive range.
GEF Project
Sri Lanka has been selected to the Global Environment Facility (GEF) project on Dugong and Seagrass Conservation. The project, which is considered the first coordinated global effort to conserve dugongs and their seagrass habitats, got off the grounds in January, 2015, and extends till December, 2018.
This project, financially supported by the GEF, is implemented by the UN Environment Programme and executed by the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund with technical support from the Dugong MoU Secretariat. Eight countries from Africa to Asia and into the Pacific have been selected to this global project with an overall investment of USD 6 million.
Thirty eight national projects have been planned in the eight countries, namely Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mozambique, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste, and Vanuatu. Seven of the projects are located in Sri Lanka with a total funding of USD 622,000.
During the media field trip to Kalpitiya, the participants were familiarized with the ground level implementation of these national level projects carried out by local project partners with the coordination of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC).
On the trail of the elusive dugong
The Ocean Resources Conservation Association (ORCA) is involved in research activities to assess the current status and distribution of seagrass beds and dugongs in selected sites in Northwest Sri Lanka. Its Marine Research Team Leader Prasanna Weerakkody said they have recorded 13 dugong deaths last year alone.
“This area was closed and inaccessible for thirty long years due to war. Now that the war is over, tourism and fishing are increasing, and these negatively impact the entire eco-system. As of the information available, about 1,000 Indian trawlers enter this area per night, causing severe damage to our sea grass eco-system. If prudent action is not taken, we will lose the dugong forever,” he cautioned.
The ORCA has been conducting field surveys using scuba divers and has been collecting information through community interviews to identify dugong hotspots. “Often, the local fishing community is reluctant to come out with information about dugong encounters due to fear of taking legal action against them if linked with captures. This reservation restricts the gathering of location information. Our team members spend extra time in the field to let the villagers get familiar with them to make the information gathering a success,” he explained.
ORCA and NARA have been using new technology such as drones and sonar devices to identify dugong hotspots, and have been using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to map available seagrass beds. Weerakkody also noted, with appreciation, the assistance of Sri Lanka Navy throughout the project.
Taking the local and foreign journalists on a boat ride, Weerakkody, supported by his team members, demonstrated how these field surveys are being carried out in shallow waters towards the West of Kalpitiya peninsula, near the bar reef.
Alternative livelihoods
The majority of families living in the area are dependent on the fishing industry, resulting in heavy fishing pressure. As a component of the GEF project, alternative livelihoods are being promoted to ease the fishing pressure, and thereby, discourage illegal fishing practices frequently found in the area.
Sawing machines, batik toolkits, and ornamental fish rearing tanks have been provided to selected families under this project led by the Sri Lanka Turtle Conservation Project (SLTCP).
“Our husbands used to engage in fishing using nylon nets, but now they have abandoned that practice. I support the family income by sewing clothes to match the income we lost after we abandoned illegal fishing. We were educated on the damage illegal fishing causes to the environment. We are happy to discontinue it. The SLTCP has also promised to give us training on batik industry, and we look forward to it,” K.B. Nilmini, a resident in Serakkuriya who is a beneficiary of the project, told the media.
In the meantime, the Biodiversity Education and Research (BEAR), another stakeholder of the GEF project, is involved in raising awareness among the local community on the destruction caused by illegal fishing methods, as well as the importance of seagrass habitats and dugong conservation. BEAR project officer Rohana Nanayakkara said awareness campaigns targeting fishing folk and school children are being conducted to meet this end.
All these project partners are being coordinated by the DWC while facilitating communication among them and organizing training sessions. DWC Research and Training Assistant Director Dr. Lakshman Peiris said, they have been working on to set up a National Facilitating Committee for better coordination of all the project partners.
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