Payuun: Thailand’s Last Dugongs

Over the last few years, a crisis has been unfolding in Thailand. An alarming number of dugongs have been washing up dead.

In 2024, 42 dead dugong were retrieved from Thai shores, and some experts believe there may be fewer than 120 dugongs left. Scientists say the animals are starving, driven by a massive die-off of seagrass which is their only source of food. Why the seagrass is vanishing remains uncertain. Causes range from pollution and coastal construction to rising ocean temperatures. In search of seagrass, dugongs are increasingly migrating to unprotected areas.

Amateur conservationist Theerasak 'Pop' Saksritawee has been volunteering to help a government-backed working group, closely monitoring dugongs that appeared suddenly in Phuket last year. Pop has been building rapport with two dugongs in particular who he has fondly named Miracle and Jingjok. In this short film for The Guardian Documentaries, supported by The Pulitzer Center, Pop uses his voice and platform to sound the alarm on the critical decline of dugongs and vanishing seagrass meadows before it is too late.