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Recently I read a very tragic article, which awoke in me a very disturbing feeling, the title of the press release to which I refer mentioned that all species of freshwater dolphins are in danger of extinction, reading these lines revealed in me this question How is it that the second most intelligent species on the planet is in danger of extinction?.

According to the arguments presented by the specialists of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, in the last decade all species of dolphins have been affected by accidental mortality caused by fishing equipment, by dams built in rivers and by the pollution suffered by freshwater bodies.

Fig. 2 Fishing is the main threat and pressure to life faced by dolphins. Image of public domain, Author: Syaibatulhamdi, 2020

In the publication, it was specifically mentioned the species Sotalia fluviatilis, known as Tucuxi, which according to biological reports is an odontocete cetacean of the family Delphinidae, whose natural habitats are in the rivers of the Amazon basin, north and east coast of South America, a species that currently entered the red list of endangered species.

Now, let's go back to the question: How is it that the second most intelligent species on the planet is in danger of extinction? First of all, we probably don't have logical answers to this question, because we know that there is a special relationship between human beings and these creatures, mainly because dolphins possess incredible affectionate characteristics, and secondly because they manifest behaviors that make us think that they are extremely intelligent living beings, therefore, it is intuitive that we care, love and protect them.

Fig. 3 Dolphins appreciate and accept humans as friends, as they are creatures that respond to social stimuli. Image of public domain, Author: Sarah Richter, 2017

At some point, I came to hear that dolphins appreciate and accept us as friends, because they are creatures that respond to social stimuli, and have the ability to solve community problems, in addition to recognizing when humans are in trouble, and somehow show interest in saving people in danger, in this situation is to analyze that we humans have broken that relationship of friendship with the dolphins, and we became a threat to their existence.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES CONSULTED:

[1] Somerville E. Hundreds of scientists warn of ‘real and imminent’ extinction threat to whales and dolphins. 2020. Article: Online access

[2] EFE. Todas las especies de delfines de agua dulce están en peligro de extinción. 2020. Article: Online access

OBSERVATION

✔ The cover image was designed by the author: @lupafilotaxia, incorporating the background Public domain image