Ganges river dolphin
Platanista gangetica (Lebeck, 1801)
ENEndangeredwhales and dolphins
The ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica) is a mammal in the whales and dolphins group, belonging to the family Platanistidae within the order Cetacea and suborder Odontoceti. It is a large animal with a representative adult body mass of 115 kg, and it is a carnivore with a cathemeral activity pattern.
Quick facts about the ganges river dolphin
The IUCN Red List classifies the ganges river dolphin as Endangered (EN) in its global assessment, a threatened category.
- Weight
- 86.5 kg – 115 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 28 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- freshwater, riverinesrc for Habitat
- Gestation
- 320 days – 365 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 10 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Active
- Day and night (cathemeral)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Marinesrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the ganges river dolphin
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
Where does the ganges river dolphin live?
Not recorded
What is the ganges river dolphin?
The Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica) is a freshwater dolphin in the family Platanistidae. It lives in the Ganges and related rivers of South Asia, namely in the countries of India, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
It is also known by the names Xihu (Assamese: শিহু, pronounced [xiɦu]) in Assam, Shushuk (Bengali: শুশুক, pronounced [ʃuʃuk]) in West Bengal and Bangladesh, and Uttum (Chittagonian: উত্তুম, pronounced [ut̪ːum]) in Chittagong region.
The Ganges river dolphin has been recognized by the Government of India as its National Aquatic Animal and is the official animal of the Indian city of Guwahati. Its first occurrence, within the Hooghly River, was documented by William Roxburgh.
From the Wikipedia article “Ganges river dolphin” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ganges_river_dolphin&oldid=1378638149), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the ganges river dolphin endangered?
The ganges river dolphin is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Endangered species.
How is the ganges river dolphin classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderCetacea
- familyPlatanistidae
- genusPlatanista
- SpeciesPlatanista gangetica (Lebeck, 1801)
Synonyms Delphinorhynchus gangetica, Delphinorhynchus gangeticus, Delphinus gangetica, Delphinus gangeticus, Delphinus gangeticus, Delphinus gangeticus, Delphinus rostrats, Delphinus rostratus, Delphinus schawensis, Delphinus shawensis, Plantanista gangetica, Platanista gangetica, Platanista gangetica gangetica, Platanista gangetica gangetica, Soosoo gangeticus, Soosoo gangeticus, Susa planista, Susu gangetica, Susu platanista
Other names and names in other languages (44)
- BhulanEnglish
- Blind river dolphinEnglish
- Blind river dolphinEnglish
- Ganges dolphinEnglish
- Ganges dolphinEnglish
- Ganges susuEnglish
- Gangetic dolphinEnglish
- Indian river dolphinEnglish
- Indus river dolphinEnglish
- Indus river dolphinEnglish
- South Asian river dolphinEnglish
- South Asian river dolphinEnglish
- Su-suEnglish
- hihoAssamese
- HihuAssamese
- shihuAssamese
- HushBangla
- foomaachBangla
- hungmaachBangla
- HurchumBangla
- ShushBangla
- shushukBangla
- sishu maachBangla
- SusukBangla
- defínovec ganžskýCzech
- Ganges-DelphinGerman
- Delfín del GangesSpanish
- sousouFrench
- Plataniste du GangeFrench
- SoosHindi
- BhagirathHindi
- SoansHindi
- SochoHindi
- SoonsHindi
- soonseHindi
- sunsarHindi
- SusuHindi
- delfino ciecoItalian
- ShusNepali
- SuongsuNepali
- GangesdolfijnDutch
- swongsuNepali
- sus matsyaNepali
- dolphin muchliUrdu
Relatives of the ganges river dolphin
Other species in the same genus Platanista.
Indus river dolphin
Platanista minor
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
Is the ganges river dolphin endangered?
Yes. The IUCN Red List classifies it as Endangered (EN) in its global assessment, which is a threatened category.
How heavy is the ganges river dolphin?
Its representative adult body mass is 115 kg, which places it in the large size class (25 to 250 kg).
What does the ganges river dolphin eat?
The ganges river dolphin is a carnivore.
How long does the ganges river dolphin live?
Its lifespan is given as 28 years.
How many young does the ganges river dolphin have?
It has 1 young per litter, after a gestation period of 320 days, with the highest reported value being 365 days (1 year).
At what age does the ganges river dolphin reach maturity?
It reaches sexual maturity at 10 years of age.
What kind of animal is the ganges river dolphin?
It is a mammal in the whales and dolphins group, classified in the family Platanistidae, order Cetacea and suborder Odontoceti.
Who named the ganges river dolphin?
Its scientific name, Platanista gangetica, carries the authority (Lebeck, 1801).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/ganges-river-dolphin
“Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/ganges-river-dolphin.
@misc{ganges_river_dolphin_2026,
title = {Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/ganges-river-dolphin},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}