during the process of catching the commercialized fish, the amazon river dolphins get caught in the nets and exhaust themselves until they die, or the local fishermen deliberately kill the dolphins that become entangled in their nets. the carcasses are discarded, consumed, or used as bait to attract a scavenger catfish, the piracatinga ("calophysus macropterus"). the use of the amazon river dolphin carcass as bait for the piracatinga dates back from 2000. the increasing consumption demand by the local inhabitants and colombia for the piracatinga has created a market for distribution of the amazon river dolphin carcasses to be used as bait throughout these regions.