PHNOM PENH, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Another newborn Mekong Irrawaddy dolphin has been spotted, bringing the number of newborn dolphin calves in Cambodia to four so far this year, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) said in a news release on Wednesday.
The new calf, about two-day old, was sighted on Tuesday between the Kampi and Chroy Banteay dolphin pools in Kratie province's Chetr Borei district by a team of researchers from the Fisheries Administration and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
"This newborn dolphin was seen swimming alongside a pod of seven adult dolphins," the news release said. "It is the fourth dolphin calf born in 2025."
The Mekong Irrawaddy dolphins have been listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species since 2004.
In 2024, the Southeast Asian country recorded a total of nine newborn dolphin calves, with four deaths, according to the news release.
The MAFF estimates that as of last year, there are 105 Irrawaddy dolphin population living along a 180-km main channel of the Mekong River in northeast Stung Treng and Kratie provinces. ■
