Dugong

Cows of the Sea

What is a Dugong?

A dugong is a marine mammal with a large population in the warm water of the Indian and pacific Oceans. However, they also inhabit Australian harbors, western coast of Madagascar, and the Persian Gulf. They range from 7 to 11 feet, and weigh from 500 to 1000 lbs. Early sightings of Dugongs were believed to be the origination of the tales of Mermaids.

Is it a Manatee?

Dugongs are often mistaken for manatees, however they do have their differences.Dugongs are cousins of manatees and share a similar plump appearance, but have a dolphin fluke-like tail.

Why is it the Cow of the Sea?

Dugongs spend most of their day grazing on sea grasses in shallow water. Sadly, Dugongs are threatened by sea grass habitat loss and industrial activites causing water pollution. This has made conservation efforts of sea grass important to conservationists.

Importance of Dugongs

Dugongs play a cruial role in the ecosystem. Their feeding behaviors maintain the health of seagrass beds, which helps maintain the storing of carbon. Dugongs sadly also are a food source for sharks and killer whales. Besides for their predators, Dugongs are vulnerable to entaglement in fishing nets and boat strikes. Finally, Dugongs are important to the tourism where they live. They are a very popular tourist attraction for snorkelers and divers.

Fun Facts

• Dugongs are more closely related to elephants than whales
• Their brains are extremely small, 300 grams or less than 1 percent of their body weight.
• Dugong tusks are believed to have aphrodisiac properties if consumed by human.
• They appear to always be smiling!
• When going to surface for breath, it appears that they are standing.
• The oldest recorded age of a Dugong is 73 years.
• Females carry babies for 13 to 15 months before giving birth.
• Not fun, but in the last 30 years their population has decreased by 90 percent.

https://www.ifaw.org/animals/dugongs

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Dugong_dugon/