Save the seagrass, save the dugong

Dugong photographed in Marsa Alam, Mubarak Bay, Egypt, 2022. In Malaysia, these marine mammals are believed to now number fewer than 100. — 123rf

RESEARCH and the gazetting of waters around the Mersing cluster of islands of Johor are underway to protect seagrass and the dugong, which is believed to now number fewer than 100 in Malaysia. The Fisheries Department says these islands are the only place in Peninsular Malaysia where dugongs can be found.

However, due to the threat to its habitat and seagrass ecosystem, the dugong population has been dwindling, and there have been about 10 dugong deaths, especially babies, between 2015 and 2022.