STORY: 15 cetacean species recorded during survey in South China Sea
DATELINE: July 17, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:14
LOCATION: SANYA, China
CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT

SHOTLIST:
1. various of survey of deep-diving and off-shore cetaceans in the South China Sea
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI SONGHAI, Researcher of Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences

STORYLINE:

A survey of deep-diving and off-shore cetaceans in the South China Sea was completed on Saturday.

Preliminary analysis of the survey shows that at least 15 cetacean species were spotted, including sperm whales, short-finned pilot whales, Risso's dolphins, and rough-toothed dolphins.

The survey, the sixth of a series, lasted 20 days on a voyage of more than 3,500 kilometers. Its task zone was mainly in the northern part of the South China Sea.

The survey was organized by the Marine Mammal and Marine Bioacoustics Laboratory under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI SONGHAI, Researcher of Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
"Through our research in the past five years, we have accumulated information and data that are rich enough for us to get a basic understanding of the species diversity and composition of cetaceans in the South China Sea, as well as the geographical distribution pattern of each species in this area. To protect biodiversity and the environment here, we need to first keep an eye on these flagship animals. If there are more of these animals, it shows that our ecological environment is getting better and the biodiversity is relatively rich."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Sanya, China.
(XHTV)