Ganges Indian narrow-headed softshell turtle ("Chitra indica"), Indian softshell turtle ("Nilssonia gangetica"), Indian peacock softshell turtle ("N. hurum") and Cantor's giant softshell turtle ("Pelochelys cantorii"; only in the lowermost section of Ganges basin). Most of these are seriously threatened. The river's most famed fauna is the freshwater Ganges river dolphin ("Platanista gangetica gangetica"), which has been declared India's national aquatic animal. This dolphin used to exist in large schools near to urban centres in both the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, but is now seriously threatened by pollution and dam construction. Their numbers have now dwindled to a quarter of their numbers
Harike Wetland (6 & 32 taxa), Crustaceans (27 taxa), Annelids (7 taxa), Nematodes (7 & 4 taxa), Rotifers (59 & 13 taxa), and Protozoans (5 & 21 taxa). The Indus dolphin (Platanista gangetica minor) supposed to have become extinct in India after 1930, but largely found in the Indus river system in Pakistan, was recently sighted in the Beas River in Harike wetland area. This aquatic mammal classified as an endangered species in the Red Data Book of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources is considered a significant find. The dolphins were discovered by Basanta Rajkumar, IFS