This Virtual Geocache is part of the 4,000 new Virtual Caches released worldwide on March 1, 2022. To celebrate this, the location of the Virtual Cache “Dolphin Square” at Hong Kong Gold Coast, was chosen to raise awareness of the famous PINK DOLPHINS in Hong Kong, which were used as the official mascot of the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997. This year 2022 is the 25th Anniversary of the Handover.
The PINK DOLPHINS are an icon of Hong Kong. Sadly their numbers are slowly diminishing, albeit they have enjoyed a slight respite during the Covid-19 pandemic as boat traffic around Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta generally has reduced. At the Hong Kong Gold Coast on the east side of the Pearl River Delta and part of the Castle Peak Bay, you can see an impressive sculpture of 3 golden dolphins.
To log this virtual Geocache you will need to undertake a minimum of 5 tasks (Visual and Factual) from the following facts and information about the PINK DOLPHINS and also from visiting the Dolphin Square to log the Cache..……
Commonly known as Chinese white dolphins and more formally as the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins these friendly marine mammals are commonly found in coastal areas of Hong Kong and the wider Pearl River Delta. The PINK DOLPHINS in Hong Kong’s waters are famous for one unique trait, their characteristic pink colouring. The dolphins are not actually born pink, but dark grey and eventually lighten over time. Academics believe that the dolphins in Hong Kong lack pigmentation on their skin as they live in murky water with minimal sunlight. The pink is simply the colour of their blood vessels seen through the skin, similar to the flushing on the human body. They live and travel in groups, and have to come up to the water surface to breathe every once in a while, creating the lively, iconic image.
Locally you can join tours to see these amazing mammals whilst they still swim in Hong Kong waters, but PINK DOLPHIN sightings in China dates back to as early as the Tang dynasty. They were once considered to be the real identity of the mythical Lo Ting. Fishermen called them “black taboo” (烏忌) and “white taboo” (白忌) and stayed away from them as the dolphins would eat their catches or simply scare away the fish in the area. Scholars believe that “black taboo” and “white taboo” refer to the grey calves and the light-skinned adults, respectively. The earliest Western record of PINK DOLPHIN sighting, on the other hand, appeared in the year 1637, when a travelling merchant Peter Mundy documented them as “swordfish” in his journal and described them as “white as milk, some of them ruddy withal.”
The large and ongoing development of Hong Kong, to improve economic and social development, has come at a cost as the constant human activity is causing damage to the PINK DOLPHIN’S natural environment, leading to dwindling numbers. In 1995, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) began studying and tracking the Chinese pink dolphins in Hong Kong, counting 88 to 145 dolphins in the first three years. The population of PINK DOLPHINS in Hong Kong has significantly diminished, from 80 in 2011, to 37 in 2021. The lowest record of individual sightings being only 32 in 2018.
I would have been logical to think that these iconic and extremely rare mammals, would be well treasured in Hong Kong, however the reality is the total opposite. In the early 1990s, the building of the Chek Lap Kok International Airport became a threat to the PINK DOLPHINS survival, causing water and noise pollutions in the area. At the same time, the land reclamation process robbed the dolphins of one of their major habitats. This reclamation works continued with the construction for Hong Kong Disneyland and then more recently for the construction of the Hong Hong-Zuhai-Macau Bridge, the 3rd Runway (3RS Project) with further reclamation works in Tung Chung. Fishing businesses in Hong Kong also poses perils to the dolphins, injuring many with propellors and fishing nets.
The PINK DOLPHIN was listed as “vulnerable” on the Red List of Threatened Species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The Hong Kong government included the PINK DOLPHIN into the list of protected animals in the Wild Animals Protection Ordinance (Cap. 170). Protected zones have also been developed to house the pink dolphins, such as the Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park and the Brothers Marine Park. The AFCD also implemented the “Code of Conduct for Dolphin Watching,” a popular tourist activity in Hong Kong. Non-governmental organisations such as Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society also dedicate their operations to preserving the precious species in Hong Kong.
These measures however have been more futile symptomatic treatments and not solutions. Licensed fishing activities are still permitted in marine parks, causing competition for the PINK DOLPHIN’S primary food source. The high-speed ferries travelling between Hong Kong, Macau, and Zhuhai, will soon continue after the Covid-19 pandemic passes and these were reported to be the most significant cause of dolphin injuries in recent years. In 2020, the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation reported 11 fatal cases of PINK DOLPHIN strandings. In their 2020–2021 report, the AFCD found that 18 frequently sighted individuals in Hong Kong have disappeared, which is the highest record yet of disappearance. Whilst the PINK DOLPHINS can live up to 40 years old, shockingly only 46 percent of the calves in Hong Kong do not live past the age of 2 years old !!!
Currently, a number of organisations continue in their efforts to protect pink dolphins and other local wildlife, including Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society, Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong, Saving the Handover Mascot, WWF-Hong Kong, and Greenpeace Hong Kong, as well as the government’s Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.
The PINK DOLPHINS deserve to be saved and awareness of their plight should be shared. As Geocachers we all have an obligation to protect the environment and all that live within it. The PINK DOLPHIN is important to Hong Kong and worth saving, so please spread the word and promote anything that can help! THANK YOU!
To log this Virtual Geocache you need to undertake a minimum of 5 of the following 10 tasks, and at least 2 from each category below, “Visual” & “Factual”. Please send photos / answers to the CO. Without clear evidence or proof of the completion of 5 tasks your “Found it” log will be deleted.
VISUAL TASKS (Please complete at least 2 of 5)
V1 – Take a photo of the Golden Dolphin Sculpture with yourselves (or something to prove that you are a geocacher), including your “official” geocaching” name.
V2 – Complete one of the 2 block puzzles at the Golden Dolphin Square, situated at the N/W side of the square. Take a photo of yourselves (or something to prove that you are a geocacher, including your “official” geocaching name) with the completed puzzle.
V3 – Take a photo of yourselves (or something to prove that you are a geocacher, including your “official” geocaching name) at one of the 2 photo boards, with the face cut outs, situated at the N/W side of the square.
V4 – Read the “Book of Chinese White Dolphin” found at the N/W side of Dolphin Square. Take a photo of your hand(s) “pointing” at the last page with something to prove that you are a geocacher, including your “official” geocaching name.
V5 – Describe the colour and shapes that form the railings surrounding the “Dolphin Square”. Take a photo of your hand(s) “pointing” at the railings with something to prove that you are a geocacher, including your “official” geocaching name.
FACTUAL TASKS (Please complete at least 2 of 5)
F1 - What is the official name of the “Sculpture” found at Dolphin Square ?
F2 - The first “Western” record of sightings of Pink Dolphin was in what year ?
F3 - How many golden arrows (made with yellowy-orange paving slabs) on the ground, are there pointing outwards from the Dolphin sculpture ?
F4 - How many black light poles are there around Dolphin Square ?
F5 - On the “Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park” floor plaque, found at Dolphin Square, count the Chinese characters. How many are there ?
Please submit your answers to the CO via the message function in the Geocaching App / Website.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.