Photo: Rare Japanese Dugong Threatened by U.S. Military Base

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A dugong forages for sea grass in the waters of the Pacific Ocean.

The roughly 50 dugongs living near Okinawa, Japan, are now listed as "critically endangered" by the Japanese government. Environmental groups hope the move will back up legal action already underway to halt the expansion of a U.S. military base into prime dugong habitat.

Photograph by Pete Atkinson/Getty Images

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