Gentle dugongs functionally extinct in Chinese waters – study

The dugong, a gentle dugong marine mammal that has frequented China’s southern waters for hundreds of years, has become functionally extinct in the country.
Research by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences said fishing, ship strikes and human-caused habitat loss have seen the number of dugongs in Chinese waters decrease rapidly from the 1970s onwards.
The report said, with no evidence of their presence in China since 2008, the research shows that “this is the first functional extinction of a large mammal in China’s coastal waters.”
The dugong, whose diet is highly dependent on sea grass, has been classified as a Grade 1 National Key Protected Animal since 1988 by China’s Sate Council.