Marine Mammals
Dugong
Dugong dugon · Marine mammal, family Dugongidae (order Sirenia)
The dugong is the sea cow the mermaid myth was pinned on, which says more about sailors' deprivation than the animal. What divers actually meet is a gray, whiskery vacuum of seagrass with a fluked tail and a permanently mild expression. Watching one work a meadow at Marsa Alam or Calauit is oddly absorbing: the muzzle plows, sand billows, halos of juvenile fish snap up the leavings, and every few minutes the whole gentle apparatus levers up for a breath. It is also a species living on thin margins, dependent on seagrass beds that anchors, coastal works, and warming keep erasing.
Dónde y cuándo ver uno
"Residente" significa que la mayoría de las inmersiones en ese destino tienen encuentros con ellos; "estacional" significa que su presencia es fiable en los meses indicados; cualquier otra cosa es un extra, no algo con lo que contar.
| Destino | Fiabilidad | Meses | Notas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marsa Alam & the Deep SouthEgypt | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo el año | |
| CoronPhilippines | Resident: seen on most dives | Todo el año | |
| Ningaloo ReefAustralia | Occasional | Todo el año | |
| Espiritu SantoVanuatu | Occasional | Todo el año |
El mejor mes, de un vistazo
| Mes | Destinos fiables |
|---|---|
| January | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| February | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| March | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| April | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| May | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| June | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| July | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| August | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| September | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| October | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| November | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
| December | Marsa Alam & the Deep South · Coron · Ningaloo Reef · Espiritu Santo |
Comprendiéndolos
Hábitat: Shallow, sheltered seagrass meadows; the only strictly marine herbivorous mammal, wholly tied to seagrass
Rango: Patchy across the Indo-West Pacific from East Africa and the Red Sea through South and Southeast Asia to northern Australia, which holds most of the world's population
Comportamiento: A slow, snuffling grazer that plows the bottom with a bristled, downturned muzzle, surfacing every few minutes with a soft snort. Generally shy; a handful of habituated individuals at tourism sites tolerate calm snorkelers, feeding on unconcerned while watched.
Dieta: Seagrass, uprooted whole; feeding trails of bare sand snake across every meadow a dugong works
Tamaño: normalmente alrededor de 2.7 m; documentado hasta 3.0 m (body length; adults commonly 250–400 kg).
Cómo comportarse cerca de uno
Approach from the side on snorkel, never from above or behind; no touching, no blocking its path to the surface, motor off near feeding animals, and cap group sizes per local rules. If it leaves a feeding trail, let it go.
Conservación
Vulnerable globally and worse regionally: functionally extinct in Chinese waters and declining across much of Asia; seagrass protection, netting bans, and boat rules are the levers that matter.
Puntos conocidos por avistamientos
Los puntos destacados fueron registrados para esta especie por nuestros editores; los números son registros de ocurrencia de GBIF anotados en un radio de unos 5 km de un punto desde 1990.
Ver
Desde los canales oficiales
Wildlife of Monterey | New film in our auditorium
Live Aviary Cam | Monterey Bay Aquarium
Live Aviary Cam | Monterey Bay Aquarium
Los vídeos son enlaces insertados a los canales de sus propios creadores. No alojamos nada y acreditamos todo.