In late October, two adult female finless porpoises that had undergone a year of preparation in an old river channel returned to the wild in the Yangtze River section near Honghu. Their age — five to six years — was chosen deliberately: it is precisely during this period that the animals adapt best to independent life and are able to quickly join a pod.
Before release, specialists carried out a thorough check of the animals' health and survival skills. Scientists had studied the water body in advance and found a group of roughly eight wild porpoises there — this was meant to make it easier for the new pod members to integrate. After release, the animals will be monitored for three months using satellite tags, assessing how they cope in the natural environment.
This is not merely a one-off action but part of a large-scale plan to save the species. The Yangtze finless porpoise is a national treasure of China, and its fate is closely tied to the state of the entire river ecosystem. The ten-year ban on commercial fishing has already borne its first fruit: according to a survey in 2025, the number of wild individuals reached 1426, whereas in 2022 there were 1249.
The project's success shows that a well-designed rehabilitation programme and controlled return to the wild can work even for species on the brink of extinction. Such releases help not only to increase numbers but also to restore the social structure of the population, which suffers from habitat fragmentation.
Every such step is a reminder: rivers are not merely transport arteries or sources of water but living communities in which every species plays its own role. When people put effort into preparation and monitoring, nature responds in kind.
Caring for river ecosystems begins with understanding that the health of a single population directly affects the resilience of the entire system — from plankton to humans, who depend on clean water and biodiversity.
