ITAHARI, June 1: The Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve has started a Dolphin Survey in the Saptakoshi River from today. The reserve has been conducting an annual census of dolphins found in the Saptakoshi.
This year, the reserve has initiated a count specifically of the Gangetic species of dolphins found in the river.
Bhupendra Prasad Yadav, senior conservation officer at the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, said that regular dolphin surveys have been conducted in the Saptakoshi since 2022.
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He added that this year’s census is being carried out with technical collaboration from the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), Koshi Province Office, and the Himalayan Nature Organization based in Kathmandu. He also noted that dolphins are recognized as sensitive aquatic mammals and are considered rare.
According to the reserve, these dolphins travel from the Ganga Sagar to the Koshi River and prefer to inhabit clean and deep waters. The census, which lasts for four days, is conducted using two different methods.
After spotting 11 dolphins in 2012 and 17 in 2017, the reserve prioritized dolphin conservation. Since then, the census has been conducted annually. According to the reserve’s data, 17 dolphins were counted in 2022, and 19 dolphins were recorded in both 2023 and 2024.
Birendra Gautam, coordinator of Koshi Province at the NTNC, expressed optimism that the number of dolphins may increase this year.
