General information about dugongs

“Dugongs”

Dugongs are marine mammals that nurse their young with milk and live in the sea. It is believed that dugongs once lived on land and had ancestors similar to elephants. Approximately 55 million years ago, the dugong’s evolutionary line adapted to living in water and never returned to live on land, similar to dolphins and whales.

(Dugong dugon)

Dugongs have a streamlined body shape resembling that of a dolphin, with greyish to pinkish-grey or brownish-grey coloration. Their underside is lighter in color. Dugongs have short, sparse hairs along their body and dense, large bristles around their mouth. They possess small eyes and ears, with small, open ear holes and no ear flaps. Their nostrils are close together in a single pair, with a flap that can open and close. Dugongs breathe every 1-2 minutes and have front flippers on each side of their body, along with mammary glands located on the base of their flippers. Their front flippers have evolved from front legs and contain five digits each. Dugongs typically swim slowly at speeds of 1.8-2.2 kilometers per hour. They have heavy, dense bones adapted for their seagrass diet and do not possess defensive weapons. Their thick skin helps protect them from bites or harm from other animals such as sharks. Dugongs have a large body but lack external ears. Their young stay with their mothers and rely on them as a strong shield.

Dugong’s name

In some regions, it may be written as “Phayoon” or “Phayur,” depending on the spelling conventions used in various Thai dialects. Southern Thais often refer to dugongs as “Duyung” or “Tuuyung,” derived from the Malaysian language which is used for dugongs (Dugong, sea pig or sea pig) in our Thai writing. ” Phayoon” in some places may be written as ” Phayoon” or ” Phayur” depending on the spelling process. speakers use another name ” meaning or dugong is Thailand’s example other names fulfill similar role offer called whereas queryInterface

Trang

Dugongs have been widely conserved, with Koh Kra as the most heavily populated dugong habitat in Thailand. Dugongs became the conservation symbol of the province (flagship species) in 1996. In addition, dugongs were used as a national lucky charm for the 29th National Games, known as the “Dugong Games.” There are many sculptures or statues of dugongs, such as a pair of dugong sculptures at the entrance to the Marine Animal Museum at Rajamangala University of Technology Srivijaya, Trang Campus.

Here is the translation of the various names for dugong and their use as place names in Thailand

Name	Province	District	Subdistrict	Name the village
Mu Duud	Chanthaburi	Tha Mai	Klong Khud	Ban Mu Dood ,Wat Mu Dood ,Ban Mu Dood School
Dugong	Rayong	Ban Chang	Pla	Ban Phayun ,Phayun Beach,Ban Phayun School
Dugong	Phatthalung	Pak Phayun	Pak Phayun	Pak Phayun Market
Du-yong	Krabi	Koh Lanta	Koh Lanta	Ban Lo Duh Yong

Source : Marine and Coastal Resources Knowledge Base