Year
2020
Publisher
IWC
Pages
01-Nov
Country / Region
South America
Document Type
Conference proceedings
Species
Amazon river dolphin, Tucuxi
Conservation Measure
Fisheries management
Threat Keywords
Bait fishing and traditional medicine
Abstract
One of the main threats to river dolphins in South America has been the illegal hunting of these species to use them as bait to catch a scavenger fish known as piracatinga. Brazil implemented a moratorium on this fishery from 2015 to 2020, but currently the catch seems to have started again. Colombia has a permanent moratorium from 2017 on the trade in piracatinga. In countries like Venezuela, Peru and Bolivia the capture of dolphins as bait for this species is confirmed. This paper analyzes the current situation of this threat country by country and calls for an articulated work to control this fishery with transnational characteristics.