South Asian river dolphin display the variances needed to support their classification as separate species. Thus, at present, a single species with two subspecies is recognized in the genus "Platanista", "P. g. gangetica" (Ganges river dolphin) and "P. g. minor" (Indus river dolphin). An assessment of divergence rates in mitochondrial DNA of the two subspecies indicates that they diverged from a common ancestor around 550,000 years ago. This ancestor is thought to have been a marine Platanistid inhabiting the epi-continental seas in South Asia during the sea level rises in the middle Miocene. The earliest fossil identified as belonging to the species is only
Endangered species recovery plan common goal. An endangered species is a species which is likely to become extinct. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has 17 categories of species status. These categories are used in the documents produced for the U.S. Endangered species act. The categories include: The IUCN also has categories that it uses to classify species, which are more widely used in conservation. These are: The recovery plan must contain at least: A recovery plan often contains the following sections: When recovery plans are carried out well, they do not simply act as stop gaps to prevent extinction, but can restore species