Following a series of photos that circulated on social media and local media, a person was revealed to be handling a Franciscana dolphin, apparently removing it from the sea to take a photo in Mar del Tuyú, which led to its death.
From Wildlife Foundation Argentina, they state that the death of a calf is an alert for the conservation of a highly threatened and endangered species.
From Wildlife Foundation Argentina, they state that the death of a calf is an alert for the conservation of a highly threatened and endangered species.
Just like what happened in the summer of 2016, a photo of a tourist holding a dolphin in a beach resort on the Argentine Coast is shaking up social media. In 2016 in Santa Teresita, in 2025 in Mar del Tuyú but the situations seem identical. In both cases, the dolphin belongs to the species Pontoporia blainvillei (popularly known as Franciscana Dolphin) and both situations led to the death of the animals.
From Wildlife Foundation Argentina, they warn that the Franciscana, or La Plata dolphin, is one of the smallest dolphins in the world: it measures between 1.30 and 1.70 m long and is a species vulnerable to extinction, according to data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Its skin, with brown tones, resembles the habits of Franciscan monks, hence its common name.
This emblematic species of the seas of our country, which due to a regrettable incident is once again in the news, is only found in Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil. In our country, it mainly lives on the coasts of the province of Buenos Aires.
Regarding what happened in Mar del Tuyú with a Franciscana calf, Manuel Jaramillo, general director of Wildlife Foundation, stated: “It is estimated that there are only 30,000 Franciscana dolphins in total in their entire distribution, which is very limited in Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina. The recovery potential of this species is very low: females have a single calf at 2 or 3 years old, which they care for for one or two years. Also, the Franciscana, like other dolphins, cannot stay out of the water for long. It has a very thick and oily skin that provides warmth, so exposure to the elements quickly causes dehydration and death.“
Its main problem is incidental capture in fishing nets: about 500 to 800 dolphins are caught annually in gillnets by fishermen in the Province of Buenos Aires. Females care for their single calf for one or two years and without the mother, the calf can become disoriented and die. For this reason, the actions of tourists and people who encounter a specimen are crucial for the survival of a vulnerable and endangered species.
In this concerning context, Wildlife Foundation reinforces the need to continue informing the population visiting the coasts of Argentina about the importance of not removing this species from the sea, and to facilitate its return to the water if encountering a specimen on the shore. The decisions made in this situation are crucial for the protection and preservation of the Franciscana Dolphin.
“We thought that the sad situation in Santa Teresita, which led to the Franciscana being designated as a Natural Monument of the Province of Buenos Aires in 2017, would help prevent situations like this from happening again. Unfortunately, we were wrong. Dolphins are considered among the most intelligent species on the planet; let’s learn from them, a photo can never be more important than life,” concludes Jaramillo.
Source: Wildlife Foundation Argentina
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