SAO PAULO — Greater than 100 dolphins have died within the Brazilian Amazon rainforest up to now week because the area grapples with a extreme drought, and lots of extra might die quickly if water temperatures stay excessive, specialists say.
The Mamiraua Institute, a analysis group of Brazil’s Ministry of Science, Know-how and Innovation, mentioned two extra useless dolphins had been discovered Monday within the area round Tefe Lake, which is vital for mammals and fish within the space. Video offered by the institute confirmed vultures selecting on the dolphin carcasses beached on the lakeside. 1000’s of fish have additionally died, native media reported.
Specialists consider excessive water temperatures are the most certainly explanation for the deaths within the lakes within the area. Temperatures since final week have exceeded 39 levels Celsius (102 levels Fahrenheit) within the Tefe Lake area.
The Brazilian authorities’s Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation, which manages conservation areas, mentioned final week it had despatched groups of veterinarians and aquatic mammal specialists to research the deaths.
There had been some 1,400 river dolphins in Tefe Lake, mentioned Miriam Marmontel, a researcher from the Mamiraua Institute.
“In a single week now we have already misplaced round 120 animals between the 2 of them, which might characterize 5% to 10% of the inhabitants,” mentioned Marmontel.
Staff have recovered carcasses of dolphins since final week in a area the place dry rivers have impacted impoverished riverside communities and caught their boats within the sand. Amazonas Gov. Wilson Lima on Friday declared a state of emergency because of the drought.
Nicson Marreira, mayor of Tefe, a metropolis of 60,000 residents. mentioned his authorities was unable to ship meals on to some remoted communities as a result of the rivers are dry.
Ayan Fleischmann, the Geospatial coordinator on the Mamirauá Institute, mentioned the drought has had a significant affect on the riverside communities within the Amazon area.
“Many communities have gotten remoted, with out entry to good high quality water, with out entry to the river, which is their major technique of transportation,” he mentioned.
Fleischmann mentioned water temperatures rose from 32 C (89 F) on Friday to nearly 38 C (100 F) on Sunday.
He mentioned they’re nonetheless figuring out the reason for the dolphin deaths however that the excessive temperature stays the principle candidate.