YANGON, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Seven Ayeyarwady dolphins, an endangered species, were found dead from February 2018 to February this year, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported Wednesday.

Illegal fishing and electrofishing were mostly blamed for their death.

An Ayeyarwady conservation team counted a total of 72 Ayeyarwady dolphins living in their natural habitats along the Ayeyarwady River from the central city of Mandalay to the northern city of Bhamo, Kachin state this month.

The team usually conducts the survey of the Ayeyarwady dolphin population in every February.

According to the previous survey, the population of dolphins in Ayeyarwady was recorded at 76, with 26 scattered between Mandalay and Kyaukmyaung areas, 37 between Male village and Shwegu and 13 between Hsin Khan and Bhamo.

The dolphin conservation area was expanded last year to include the 100-km-long stretch of water from Male village of Mandalay region to Shwegu of Kachin state, aiming to protect the endangered dolphins from extinction.