Gharials, the critically endangered fish-eating crocodilians of the Ganges system, face extinction from riverine habitat destruction with breeding programs and river restoration as the primary conservation strategies.
Gharials in the wild face survival challenges at every life stage. Nest sites on sandy riverbanks are being destroyed by sand mining, eliminating the ability to reproduce. Juveniles hatched from surviving nests face entanglement in fishing nets. Adults displaced from feeding territories by river modification face nutritional stress. The combination of reproductive failure and ongoing juvenile mortality means the population cannot sustain itself without active management support including nest protection, juvenile rearing programs, and river habitat protection.