Thriving or threatened in Nepal?

Nepal's Karnali, Kosi, Mahakali and Narayani rivers were once home to a thriving susu population in the section of the Tarai plains before they enter Indian territory. In recent decades however, there has been a dramatic drop in Nepal's river dolphin population, primarily attributable to barrages, which block rivers' flow and impede fish and dolphin migration. But while all Nepali dolphin watchers agree that a drop has occurred, opinions on precise numbers are anything but unanimous.

While conservation officials in Kathmandu are declaring the virtual extinction of the susu in Nepali waters, the dolphin protection centre in Nepal's western Tarai district of Kailali, a unique private effort involving local enthusiasts, has reported an increase in dolphin sightings. The centre says the rise has been evident for the past three years, a claim that government experts treat with unveiled scepticism. The dispute extends to even whether the susu is extinct in certain rivers. According to Dr Shanta Ram Gyawali of the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation, dolphins have completely disappeared from the Mahakali and Narayani rivers in western and central Nepal. Additionally, he says that while 15 to 20 dolphins appear in the Karnali and Kosi rivers during the annual monsoon, only four to six inhabit them in the dry winter period.