Odisha is home to 710 dolphins, the highest number of which are found in the Rajnagar forest division in the Kendrapara district, which includes the Bhitarkanika and Gahirmatha wildlife sanctuaries.

They are followed by the Chilika lake, a brackish lake spread across three districts of Odisha: Puri, Khurda and Ganjam.

During the counting in the Rajnagar forest division, four kinds of dolphins — Irrawaddy, Bottlenose, Humpback and Spinner species —were found. In the Chilika wildlife division, only two types of dolphins are found: Irrawaddy and Humpback dolphins.

Of the 710 dolphins, 188 are Irrawaddy dolphins, 16 Bottlenose dolphins, 498 Humpback dolphins and eight Spinner dolphins.

As per the report, the Rajnagar forest division, including Gahirmatha and Bhitarkanika, recorded the highest number of dolphins, with as many as 505 dolphins recorded. The number of dolphins in this region has increased by three. Gahirmatha is conducive to the Olive ridley turtles to lay their eggs. This year, more than six lakh Olive ridleys have laid their eggs and returned to sea.

Under the Rajnagar forest division, 22 Irrawaddy dolphins, five Bottlenose dolphins, 470 Humpback dolphins and eight spinner dolphins were found during the counting. The census report of dolphins was made public on Tuesday.

Similarly, as many as 174 dolphins, including 159 Irrawaddy and 15 Humpback dolphins, were found in Chilika. The dolphins are primarily noticed in the Satpada area of Chilika. “Earlier, Irrawady dolphins were found in Chilika lake but now are noticed in many water bodies of the state,” said an official.

The census on dolphins was held in January, 2025, in different water bodies across the state, focusing on Chilika and Rajnagar forest division.

Besides these two hot spots, seven Irrawaddy dolphins were found in the Balasore wildlife division. Thirteen Humpback dolphins were found in Berhampur, four Bottlenose dolphins in Bhadrak wildlife division and seven Bottlenose dolphins were found in Puri wildlife division.