Hong Kong's pink dolphins are at risk.
Conservationists announced a dire outlook for Hong Kong’s signature pink dolphins, if China doesn’t make huge changes in the way it’s handling environmental problems.
Between 2003 and 2011, their numbers decreased by half, plummeting from 158 to just 78.
Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society chairman Samuel Hung said, “It is up to the government and every Hong Kong citizen to stand up for dolphins. We risk losing them unless we all take action."
Experts attribute the most recent dramatic population decline of the mammal to overfishing, increased marine traffic, pollution, and coastal development.
Hung believes individuals should lobby the companies involved in these activities to cease or diminish practices that harm the dolphins.
The animals, technically called Chinese White Dolphins, are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being "near endangered".
The skin of the pink dolphin is actually white or light grey. In some areas, such as Hong Kong, the changes in temperature causes activity in the blood vessels that makes the flesh appear to be pink.. Their exterior looks more pink as they get older.
