A beautiful and gentle dugong, which captured the hearts of Thailand, has been found dead with pieces of plastic in its stomach.
The dugong is a species of sea cow that can be found throughout the warm latitudes of the Indian and western Pacific Oceans. It is the only member of the Dugongidae family, and its closest living relatives are the manatees. Dugongs can be quite large, reaching lengths of more than 13 feet and weigh more than 2,000 pounds. They give birth to large young, which they nurse for as long as a year and a half. They can live up to seventy years.
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The mammal is sometimes thought to be the source of the mermaid myth. Mariam became nationally famous after she was discovered swimming all alone, without her parents. She was then “adopted” by the people of Thailand.
Mariam, a name that means “lady of the sea”, was found stranded in April on a beach in the southern Krabi province. She was estimated to be just a few months old and was believed to have been separated from her mother after misjudging the tides.
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The Thai authorities took her to a safer area and fed her milk and sea grass. Later, they released her into waters around Koh Libong, which is known for its small population of dugongs.
Aware that Mariam had no mother to teach her how to feed, the authorities continued to monitor her progress. They provided live Facebook updates, as a growing number of Thais fell in love with her and wanted to follow her progress.
Pictures of young Mariam clinging to the female vet feeding her brought the animal celebrity status. She even caught the attention of one of Thailand’s princesses.
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Last week Mariam was found ill and refused to eat. She was also losing a lot of weight. Sadly, she died on Saturday. An autopsy, involving ten veterinarians, determined she was killed by the plastic she had eaten.
Mariam died just after midnight after going into shock and efforts to resuscitate her failed, Chaiyapruk Werawong, head of Trang province marine park, told AFP. He added:
She died from a blood infection and pus in her stomach we found small amounts of plastic waste in her intestinal tract.
The plastic had caused obstructions in the animal’s stomach, leading to inflammation and gas build-up, veterinarian Nantarika Chansue posted on Facebook, who called for Mariam’s death to serve as a lesson. She said:
We could partially treat the respiratory infection but the obstruction of plastic rubbish… could not be cured.
She taught us how to love and then went away as if saying please tell everyone to look after us and conserve her species.
Many pieces of small plastic clogged her intestines and caused inflammation, leading to blood infection and inflamed lungs.
Everyone is saddened by this loss, but it reiterates that we need to save the environment to save these rare sea animals.1
Dugongs are listed as “vulnerable,” meaning they are at high risk of endangerment in the wild, after thousands of years of being hunted by humans for their meat and oil.
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Thailand is believed to be home to approximately 250 of these gentle creatures. Thai laws prohibit hunting or trading them, and the country has acknowledged they are living in part of a region that has a problem with plastic pollution in the waters.
In June, along with nine other southeast Asian countries, Thailand adopted a joint declaration to combat marine debris. This is a step in the right direction.
Hopefully Mariam’s death will not be in vain, and will serve as yet ANOTHER wake-up call that we must stop using plastic. We also must combat debris polluting mother earth’s oceans and waterways – which are home to many breathtaking species that are at the mercy of human carelessness.
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