When people and wildlife overlap, there can be unintended negative consequences, but when fishers in Pakistan caught a river dolphin, The Express Tribune reported that something good happened.
Here's what to know
According to The Express Tribune, people were fishing on the Chenab River when the dolphin became caught in their net, and they chose to remove it and let it go instead of harming it or keeping it. In the footage, the animal is disentangled before heading back into the river.
Sources cited by The Express Tribune estimated the dolphin weighed more than 353 pounds (four maunds) and was about six feet long.
The outlet also noted that river dolphins are rare aquatic animals and that hunting them is prohibited. Al Jazeera has reported that river dolphins might be starting to come back, but they still have a long way to go.
Fortunately, according to the World Wildlife Fund, Pakistan has recently established a new protected area for the 2,000 Indus river dolphins who live there.
The people who were fishing called for better public awareness of river dolphins. They also wanted stronger monitoring by the relevant authorities to protect rare aquatic species in the country's rivers.
TCD Picks » Quince Spotlight
💡These best-sellers from Quince deliver affordable, sustainable luxury for all
Where can I learn more?
Other dolphin rescue and entanglement incidents show how often these animals run into danger around fishing gear.
• At sea, fishermen saved a calf after finding it trapped in an anchor line.
• In Brazil, passersby rescued a stranded baby dolphin after it washed ashore alive.
• Off Texas, marine biologists rushed to rescue a dolphin calf in distress.
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
