Why are boto dolphins pink?

The coloring is believed to be scar tissue from rough games or fighting over conquests. The brighter the pink, the more attractive the males are to females—at least during mating season, which takes place when the water has receded and males and females are confined to the river channel again.

Are boto dolphins aggressive?

The truth is that the boto – one of the few remaining freshwater dolphin species on Earth – is still something of an enigma. There is certainly a lot of aggression between the dolphins, especially the males, which are about 55% heavier than females.

What are pink dolphins called?

Amazon river dolphin
Facts. The Amazon river dolphin, also known as the pink river dolphin or boto, lives only in freshwater. It is found throughout much of the Amazon and Orinoco river basins in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Venezuela.

Are boto dolphins friendly?

They are often friendly and curious toward people. Amazon, or pink, river dolphin (Inia geoffrensis). Also called boto, bufeo, and pink dolphin, it is common in the turbid waters of the Amazon and Orinoco river basins.

What kind of animal is the boto river dolphin?

Scientific Classification Common Name boto, Amazon River Dolphin, bufeo colorado Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Cetacea; more recently Cetartiodactyla Family Platanistidae Genus Species Inia geoffrensis

What kind of dolphin swims in the Amazon River?

Into this seasonal sea, which remains for half the year, swims the Amazon river dolphin, or boto. Botos have the characteristic dolphin smile and, unlike their marine cousins, bulbous foreheads and long, skinny beaks.

Why are boto dolphins hunted in the Amazon Basin?

Commercial fishing in the Amazon basin is on the rise, and with it, a probable increase in dolphin mortality due to incidental entanglement in fishing nets. The Boto is hunted for fish bait, and as human food.

Which is the largest dolphin in the world?

SPECIES: Geoffrensis. The Amazon River Dolphin, also called the boutu, boto, or bufeo, is the largest of the freshwater dolphins, and like all freshwater dolphins it is endangered because of hunting, human pressures, and degradation of habitat.