Focus on Arts and Ecology

The big environmental stories in the Chinese media (7-13 May) 

In an effort to save the species, several Yangtze finless porpoises have been taken from their river habitat. On Monday, authorities announced that 19 had already been relocated, of which six were sent to aquariums for artificial breeding purposes.

Chinese NGOs have raised concerns over keeping cetaceans in captivity, and questioned whether captive breeding can benefit wild populations. 

This isn’t the first relocation of finless porpoises from the Yangtze to aquariums. In 2018, there was a plan to move 14 of them. But, due to huge controversy generated by the scheme, probably only six or seven were moved in the end.

In 2017, there were an estimated 1,000 Yangtze finless porpoises left in the wild, compared with more than 1,800 giant pandas.

Chinese experts have been studying how to breed the porpoise in captivity since 2005. But only four animals born in captivity have survived, with another six dying less than 100 days after being born.

Chimelong, an aquarium which received porpoises both in 2018 and this time around, has long been criticised for poor treatment of animals, such as African elephants, for tourism.

Opponents argue the data that researchers collect at Chimelong is not likely to help protect and restore the wild population. In an interview with Chinese media a few years ago, the authorities defended relocating the animals to aquariums saying that they provided good facilities and resources and “should be given a chance.”

A captive breeding programme attempted in the Gulf of Mexico for the vaquita, an animal closely related to the Yangtze finless porpoise, ended in tragic failure. 

Experts believe overfishing is the main thing driving the finless porpoise to the brink. The Baiji dolphin, another cetacean inhabitant of the Yangtze, was declared functionally extinct in 2006 due to lack of food supply. 

Many believe China should focus on protecting the natural habitats of these species; in this vein, the country has issued a 10-year fishing ban in the Yangtze and enacted a law to protect the great river.

“We cannot expect to save the Yangtze finless porpoise through artificial breeding,” said Wang Ding, one of the researchers who leads the breeding study at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. 
 
Read Shi Yi’s award-winning story about the Yangtze finless porpoise on China Dialogue.

(Sources: China Dialogue)