China: Baiji dolphin disappears from Yangtz River, climate crisis threatens more species

They called her the “Goddess of the Yangtze” — a creature so rare that it was believed to bring fortune and protection to local fishermen and all those lucky enough to spot her.

But overfishing and human activity have brought it to the brink of extinction and it hasn’t been seen for decades.

“The baiji, or Yangtze River dolphin, was a unique and beautiful creature — there was nothing like it,” said Samuel Turvey, a British zoologist and conservationist who has spent more than two decades in China trying to track the animal.

“It has existed for tens of millions of years and was in its own family of mammals. There are other river dolphins in the world, but this one was very different, unrelated to anything else,” Turvey said.

“His death was more than just another species tragedy — it was a massive loss of river diversity in terms of how unique it was and left huge holes in the ecosystem.”

Experts have expressed deep concern that other rare species of animals and plants native to the Yangtze are likely to suffer a similar fate to the baiji river dolphin as worsening climate change and extreme weather conditions affect Asia’s longest river.

China is facing its worst heat wave on record and the Yangtze, the world’s third longest river, is drying up.

With below-average rainfall since July, its water levels have dropped to record levels of 50% of their normal levels for this time of year, exposing cracked river beds and even revealing submerged islands.

Drought has already had a devastating effect on China’s most important river, which stretches some 6,300 kilometers from the Tibetan Plateau to the East China Sea near Shanghai and provides water, food, transport and hydroelectric power to more than 400 million. of people.

The human impact was enormous. Factories were closed to preserve electricity and water supplies for tens of thousands of affected people.

Less talked about, experts say, is the environmental impact that climate change and associated extreme weather events have had on the hundreds of protected and endangered plant and wildlife species that live in and around the river.

“The Yangtze is one of the most ecologically critical rivers in the world for biodiversity and freshwater ecosystems — and we are still discovering new species annually,” said conservation ecologist Hua Fangyuan, an assistant professor at Peking University.

“Many of the little (known) and unknown fish and other aquatic species are likely to be silently facing extinction risks and we just don’t know enough.”

Hundreds of endangered species

Over the years, conservationists and scientists have identified and documented hundreds of wild animal and plant species native to the Yangtze.

These include the Yangtze finless porpoise which, similar to the baiji, faces extinction due to human activity and habitat loss, and critically endangered reptiles such as the Chinese alligator and the Yangtze giant soft-shelled tortoise — believed to to be the largest living species of freshwater turtle in the world.

Experts have also noticed a drastic decline in many native freshwater fish species, such as the now extinct Chinese paddlefish and sturgeon.

At high risk is the Chinese giant salamander, one of the world’s largest amphibians. Wild populations have dropped, said Turvey, the zoologist, and the species is “now on the brink of extinction.”

“Although they are a protected species, Chinese giant salamanders are under greater threat from climate change – rising global temperatures and droughts will definitely not help when they are already extremely vulnerable,” Turvey said.

“They have long faced threats such as poaching, habitat loss and pollution, but when you add climate change to the mix, their chances of survival become drastically reduced,” he added.

“They can only live in freshwater environments and lower water levels would inevitably put greater pressure on their numbers across China.”

A problem for the world

Nature conservation groups such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) say the situation in the Yangtze is of great concern not only to the Chinese people and government, but also to the international community at large.

“Rivers around the world, from Europe to the United States, have slowed to historically low flow levels that are negatively impacting ecosystems,” said lead scientist Jeff Opperman.

“Reduced river flow and warmer waters in the Yangtze pose a threat to freshwater species and increase pressure on already critically endangered animals such as the remaining finless dolphins of the Yangtze and Chinese alligators left in the wild. Lower river levels also affect the health of (nearby) lakes and swamps, which are vital for millions of migratory birds along the East Asian route.”

Hua, the conservation ecologist, said more public awareness and greater efforts are needed to help China’s shrinking great river.

“Humans depend on nature to survive, period. This is a lesson for any civilization,” she said.

“The Yangtze is the longest river in China and (all of) Asia and has long been the cradle of civilization. Despite serious threats and conservation losses over the years, there is still much biodiversity to conserve in and along the Yangtze.”

Few would deny the Yangtze’s importance and symbolism. But experts say that unless action is taken – and soon – more species will follow the fate of the baiji and Chinese oarfish.

Turvey, the British zoologist, warned against the kind of complacency that allowed the baiji to disappear.

“The Yangtze was a jewel in the crown of Asia. There is still a lot of biodiversity to fight for and we must not give up hope of saving species like giant salamanders, river reptiles and others,” Turvey said.

“If there’s one thing we can learn from the death of the Yangtze River dolphin, it’s that extinction is forever and we can’t take it lightly.”