Save Pucallpa river dolphin from captivity

Amazon River dolphins are a species threatened by extinction. They are internationally protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and listed in Annex 1 (species threatened with extinction). In Peru Amazon River Dolphins are additionally protected by the national law  N° 26585 which prohibits extraction, processing and commercialization of the protected dolphin species and also requires special permits for maintaining them in captivity. The law obliges everyone to return stranded or accidentally caught dolphins to their habitat.

In July 2008 a juvenile river dolphin was caught by timber workers in the river Ucayali. It was then obtained by the zoo of Pucallpa. The zoo admits to not have permits to maintain the dolphin and that the conditions the animal is kept in are not adequate. It is therefore considered by the zoo to transport the animal to another one, the zoo of Huachipa, close to Peru%u2019s capital Lima %u2013 again such plans are made without the involvement of governmental entities and without having permits or even experience with the transport of cetaceans.

Instead of exposing the animal to life-threatening transports a rehabilitation plan must be set up immediately under transparent and open involvement of governmental entities, Peruvian conservation groups and international specialists such as the IUCN cetacean specialist group, in order to ensure that the dolphin can be returned soon and successfully into the wild as it is demanded by the Peruvian law.

While both zoos publicly claim to save the dolphin and even ask people for support, in fact all offers to help from Peruvian conservation groups have been ignored and no information about the dolphins%u2019 whereabouts and its health status has been provided by the zoos. It seems possible that in fact the zoos plan to maintain the dolphin as a visitor attraction while publicly disguising this as a rescue operation in order to find approval. If this case is not handled properly it could create a dangerous precedent motivating more zoos to become involved in so called rescue activities and leading to more river dolphins in captivity.

Amazon River dolphins are a species threatened by extinction. They are internationally protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and listed in Annex 1 (species threatened with extinction). In Peru Amazon River Dolphins are additionally protected by the national law  N° 26585 which prohibits extraction, processing and commercialization of the protected dolphin species and also requires special permits for maintaining them in captivity. The law obliges everyone to return stranded or accidentally caught dolphins to their habitat.

In July 2008 a juvenile river dolphin was caught by timber workers in the river Ucayali. It was then obtained by the zoo of Pucallpa. The zoo admits to not have permits to maintain the dolphin and that the conditions the animal is kept in are not adequate. It is therefore considered by the zoo to transport the animal to another one, the zoo of Huachipa, close to Peru%u2019s capital Lima %u2013 again such plans are made without the involvement of governmental entities and without having permits or even experience with the transport of cetaceans.

Instead of exposing the animal to life-threatening transports a rehabilitation plan must be set up immediately under transparent and open involvement of governmental entities, Peruvian conservation groups and international specialists such as the IUCN cetacean specialist group, in order to ensure that the dolphin can be returned soon and successfully into the wild as it is demanded by the Peruvian law.

While both zoos publicly claim to save the dolphin and even ask people for support, in fact all offers to help from Peruvian conservation groups have been ignored and no information about the dolphins%u2019 whereabouts and its health status has been provided by the zoos. It seems possible that in fact the zoos plan to maintain the dolphin as a visitor attraction while publicly disguising this as a rescue operation in order to find approval. If this case is not handled properly it could create a dangerous precedent motivating more zoos to become involved in so called rescue activities and leading to more river dolphins in captivity.

Dear Mr. Espino Sanchez

We the undersigned are very concerned about the fate of a juvenile Amazon River dolphin being captured in July 2008 in the Ucayali River and currently being held without proper permits and under sub-standard living conditions in the zoo of Pucallpa.

Amazon River dolphins are threatened with extinction and protected both under national and international law. The Peruvian law demands the rehabilitation and reintroduction of all stranded and accidentally caught dolphins into their habitat.

We would like to ask you to do all in your power to ensure that:

1.) a thorough investigation will be launched in order to find out about how the dolphin came into possession of the zoo of Pucallpa and why no permits for his captivity were requested or why no governmental entities had been involved in the supposed rescue effort of the zoo

2.) no transport permit will be given to transfer the specimen from the zoo of Pucallpa to the zoo of Huachipa

3.) the zoo of Pucallpa, who assumed voluntary responsibility over the dolphin without having permits, will be obliged to invest the necessary financial resources in order to maintain the dolphin under optimum conditions in order to guarantee its wellbeing.

4.) To set up an ad-hoc working group under participation of representatives from the Peruvian government, from national conservation groups and international cetacean specialists, which elaborates, implements and supervises a rehabilitation plan for the dolphin. The goal of this plan must be to return the dolphin to the wild as soon as possible.

Thank you for your support