• IDENTIFICATION
• LEGAL CLUSTERS
• GEOGRAPHIC CLUSTERS
• TRADE CLUSTERS
• ENVIRONMENT CLUSTERS
• OTHER FACTORS

I. Identification

1. The Issue

2. Description

Background:

More closely related to elephants than to whales or dolphins, the dugong's (Dugong dugon) closest aquatic relative is the manatee. Both belong to the order Sirenia in the mammal family. A typical dugong can reach three meters in length and weigh 400 kilograms. Dugong life spans are similar to humans with some dugongs reaching 70 years of age. Dugongs feed exclusively on seagrass meadows which, along with their bovine-like appearance, has earned them the nickname of 'sea-cow.' Scientists studying the dugong believe that the feeding activity of the animal may help to maintain the health of the sea grass beds upon which they graze. When dugongs eat, they stir up the sea grass beds. It is believed that this activity helps the grass beds to grow and increase in density.

Resembling a more robust, less streamlined dolphin or seal, dugongs are grey-bronze in color. Dugongs use their fluked tail for swimming and their front flippers for balance and turning. Their head is round with small eyes and large snout. Dugongs must surface to breath. However, unlike dolphins and whales, they are not able to hold their breath for long periods of time.

Dugongs are found in shallow tropical and subtropical waters of the Indo-Pacific region. They can be found in the waters of 43 countries, however, in many of these nations, the dugong population is tiny. Australia (approximately 80,000) and the Persian Gulf (approximately 7,500) have the largest dugong populations. In the Persian Gulf, the dugong can be found in the territorial waters of Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Dugongs reach sexual maturity between the ages of ten and seventeen. When a dugong has a calf, she nurses it for eighteen months or more. In general, the female dugong will reproduce once every three years, with single calf being the normal number of offspring.

Threats:

In the Persian Gulf, as in the rest of their habitat area, the dugong faces numerous threats to its survival, most of them manmade. Furthermore, several of the dugong's natural traits increase their vulnerability to the negative stresses resulting from human activity.

The dugong's passive nature, its need to surface often, and its general habitat area all combine to make the animal vulnerable to hunting. Although hunting is not nearly the threat that it once was, the decline of the dugong throughout the world can be attribted, in part, to man's predation of the species. A close relative of the dugong, the Stellar Sea Cow, was indeed hunted into extinction in the late eighteenth century.

Dugongs can hold their breath for roughly eight minutes. This fact, when taken in conjunction with the fact that dugongs feed in areas rich in commercially valuable fish and crustecean species, means that dugongs are at great risk of becoming tangled and drowned in fishing nets. Efforts aimed at protecting the dugong from such a fate often curtail or prohibit fishing.

Due to its exclusive diet of sea grasses, the dugong is extremely vulnerble habitat loss. Scientific studies have demonstrated that where sea grass beds abound, Dugong populations tend to remain stable, whereas, when there is a scarcity of available grazing areas, dugong populations experience significant fluctuation. With the increasing population of the Persian Gulf, has come increasing development along the coastal areas of the region. The discharge of waste and the development of coastal areas by the tourism and aquaculture sectors have tremendous negative effects on the health and viability of the area's sea grass beds, and the consequences for the dugong can be severe.

One of the most constant threats posed to the dugongs of the Persian Gulf is that of water pollution, most especially water pollution as a result of oil spills. With an enormous amount of the world's oil supplies located in the Persian Gulf region, the transport of oil through the Persian Gulf is a fact of life. So too are oil spills. Oil in the water of the Persian Gulf destroys dugong habitats and is likley to have significant direct negative health effects on the dugong. Following several major oil spills, scores of dead dugongs have been washed ashore. Although oil does not hinder dugong movement, the effects of oil ingestion seem to be a major contributor to dugong death due to its effects on animals digestive system.

Conservation Efforts:

Throughout the Persian Gulf, efforts are underway to preserve the dugong for future generations. While only Saudi Arabia and the UAE are parties to the CITES agreement, both Bahrain and Qatar have laws designed to protect the dugong. Several factors have combined to make dugong conservation more difficult. The nations of the Gulf are hampered by a lack of information relating to almost every facet of dugong life. In recent years, several efforts have been initiated in order to learn more about dugong patterns of movement, feeding habits, population levels, and other factors of concern for those working to preserve the dugong.

The Emirate of Abu Dahbi in the United Arab Emirates has taken the lead in regional conservation efforts. In 1996, the Environmental Research and Wildlife Development Agency (ERWDA) was established to support environmental conservation and rehabilitation efforts. ERWDA was given the authority to enact ordinances and undertake any initiative thought to benefit its mission. In 1998, with the assistance of Dr. Tony Preen, one of the world's formost dugong experts, ERWDA began a detailed study of the dugong. Dr. Saif Al Ghais, ERWDA's Secretary General remarked that 'the dugong is a flagship species in terms of our marine environment. By studying the dugong, we will be able to understand more about the animal itself, and also about the important sea-grass habitat in which it lives and feeds.'

The fact that the dugong population of the Persian Gulf is migratory means that efforts at conservation are challenged by the need for the governments and concerned agencies of four nations to cooperate in efforts to study and preserve the dugong. With little attention having been paid to the dugong's plight, the nations of the Gulf are scrambling to learn more about the dugong. In the long run, the considerable resources available those charged with protecting the dugong may be a factor in the success of the effort. Furthermore, the knowledge gained through scientific study and conservation will likely be useful througout the region.

3. Related Cases

4. Draft Author: