Tuesday, 11 February 2025
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A group of divers made a disturbing discovery when they came across animals that had been imprisoned in underwater cages. Dugongs, marine mammals that are close relatives of manatees, were being held in two underwater cells. The whole incident took place while exploring the waters around the Indonesian island of Kokoya.
The animals were kept in two separate cages, according to one of the divers who informed the authorities about the case. The younger dugong was allowed to move around the cage without any additional restrictions, while its mother was additionally tethered by her tail with a thick rope. The dugongs were caught by a local fisherman, who apparently wanted to earn some money by showing them to tourists.
“He said that for a fee, we could see the dugongs and also take a photo,” Delon Lim, one of the tourists, recounted afterwards.
It is not known how long the animals were in captivity, although according to the divers’ accounts it must have been at least several weeks. This was evidenced by a deep wound made by a rope tied to the tail of the larger dugong. As the divers conclude, the sight was horrific and squeezed at the heart.
After getting, or rather buying, permission to enter the cage and take pictures, Lim and his friends took some photographs and recorded a video showing the full extent of the suffering and torment of the inhabitants of this macabre pseudo zoo.
In an effort to spare these gentle creatures from suffering, the group asked the owner of the ‘zoo’ to release the animals, while informing him that they are strictly protected as being in danger of extinction.
“On leaving the island, the fisherman assured us that he would release the animals, but somehow we didn’t really want to believe it… so myself and friends shared the collected footage on social media” – Lim concludes.
As it turned out, this was the right decision. Within hours, the diver was contacted by the authorities responsible for the protection of wild and endangered species, asking for the exact location of the cages with the dugongs held. The following day, officers found the dugongs still trapped. Only then were they able to be returned to freedom and given proper care.
Source: thedodo.com
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