River dolphins are among the most endangered cetaceans globally, facing threats from dam construction, fishing gear entanglement, and pollution in major river systems across Asia and South America.
River dolphin welfare is threatened by multiple anthropogenic pressures simultaneously. Fishing gear entanglement causes drowning deaths in small nets. Deliberate killing for use as catfish bait persists in the Amazon. Pollution including agricultural runoff, mining chemicals, and plastic causes toxic exposure. Dam construction eliminates migration routes and creates noise barriers disruptive to echolocating species. The extinction of the baiji represents a total welfare failure — an entire species lost to human activity, with individuals suffering and dying before the population collapsed. Remaining river dolphin populations require urgent intervention including gear modification programs, dam removal or fish passages, and pollution reduction to prevent following the baiji into extinction.