Baiji, the freshwater dolphin.

Qiqi, the only captive Yang tze River dolphin, also called Baiji, which died in the Centre in July 2002. 

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Lipotidae
Genus: Lipotes
Species: Vexillifer

Status: Critically Endangered

Baiji is a freshwater dolphin that can be found only in Yangtze River, China. It was called “Goddess of the Yangtze” in China. Baiji has lived in Yangtze River for 20 million years, the fossil records that the dolphin first appeared 25 million years ago and then migrated from Pacific Ocean to Yangtze River 20 million years ago.

Nowadays, the Baiji dolphin is fighting for its survival, since there are less than 100 Baijis remaining. 4 years ago, conservation experts were unable to locate any Baiji during the expedition and they thought that Baiji were extinct. However, in 2007 Baiji existence was confirmed when a video from local institution captured of one.


The decreasing number of Baiji caused by ship traffic, pollution, human land uses, unsustainable fishing and lack of conservation measures. Illegal hunting of the baiji also one of the main cause of the decreasing number of Baiji, since its meat and its body parts are used in traditional medicines. Another main cause is the Dam that was built on the Yangtze River called The Three Gorges Dam. This dam will produce further stress on the baiji population, because the dam blocks the baiji from swimming upstream. 


IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Status:

1970's: Indeterminate

1980's - 1994:Endangered

1996 - 2004:Critically Endangered

2006:Critically Endangered

Population Estimates:

Before 1900: 3000 - 5000

1980: 400

1985-6: 300

1993: 150 - 240

1995: Probably fewer than 100

2003: Maybe no more than a few tens of individuals

2006: Recent informed guesses range from "there may be only a few dozen" to "there are very likely less than a hundred"

Since the 1970s, China government outlawed deliberate killing, restricted fishing, and established nature reserves. In 1978, the Chinese Academy of Science established the "Freshwater Dolphin Research Centre" in order to recover the species of Baiji, however only few Baiji captured and survived more than a few months. 

In December 1996, the first Chinese aquatic species protection was founded. It has raised about 10,000 USD to fund cell preservation and to maintain the Baiji facilities. 4 years before this conservation founded, five protected areas of the Yangtze have been designated as Baiji reserves. However, these 5 reserves only cover 350 kilometers, about 1/3 of the Baijis range, leaving the rest unprotected.

In 2001, the Chinese government approved a Conservation Action Plan for Cetaceans of the Yangtze River, unfortunately there was only little money available in China to aid the conservation. Efforts to save the mammals proved to be too little too late. The chief executive of the Baiji.org Foundation said, "The strategy of the Chinese Government was a good one, but we didn't have time to put it into action."

Trivia: 

• The Baiji weighs 135-230 kg. Its length is up to 2.5 meters in females and 2.3 meters in males
• The Baiji only occurs in freshwater rivers and lakes, since it favors in an area with sandbars such as Yangtze River.
• It takes 6 years to mature for females, 4 years for males
• Baiji was estimated to have lived 24 years
• Live in small groups of 3-4 animals, which may come together to make up a social unit of 9-16 dolphins

References: 

- World Wildlife Fund (2007, September 1). Baiji Dolphin Previously Thought Extinct Spotted In The Yangtze River. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070831123429.htm

- National Marine Fisheries Service (2007). Chinese River Dolphin / Baiji / Yangtze River Dolphin. Retrivied November 9, 2010, from http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/cetaceans/chineseriverdolphin.htm#more

- Enhancement Endangered animals of the world. (2006, June 4). Animal Info – Baiji. Retrivied November 9, 2010, from http://www.animalinfo.org/species/cetacean/lipovexi.htm

- Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (2010, November 12). Baiji. Retrivied November 12, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_River_Dolphin