FWD: On a rescue mission

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This article is from thestar.com.my

URL:

http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2002/7/16/features/chinadolphin2\

& sec=features

 

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<DIV ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=2 FACE= " Arial " COLOR= " #9F9F9F " >Tuesday, July 16,

2002

On a rescue mission

 

 

SCIENTISTS in China are preparing a drastic rescue plan for one of the

planet & #8217;s rarest animals & #8211; a dolphin with the misfortune of living in

one of China & #8217;s busiest and most polluted rivers. & nbsp;<p>

 

The plan calls for professional fishermen to round up all the fewer than 100

Yangtze River dolphins, one of only four freshwater dolphin species in the

world. & nbsp;<p>

 

The captured dolphins would then be released in a protected reserve. & nbsp;<p>

 

Government scientists say the dolphins & #8217; only hope is to be moved from

their sole natural habitat, the lower Yangtze River in central China. Their

numbers have dwindled rapidly with the increase in fishing, boat traffic and

industry along China & #8217;s longest river. & nbsp;<p>

 

Other experts agree that unless something is done, the blue-grey dolphins

& #8211; the same size as their more playful ocean cousins but with longer,

thinner snouts & #8211; will be extinct in 20 years. & nbsp;<p>

 

But they say simply relocating the dolphins won & #8217;t solve the river & #8217;s

worsening condition, or help other species. & nbsp;<p>

 

They also say there may be difficulty catching the smart, fast-moving

creatures, and getting them to accept their new home. & nbsp;<p>

 

& #8220;Tracking down the dolphins will be like looking for a needle on the

bottom of the ocean, & #8217; & #8217; said Zhou Kaiya, an expert on dolphins at

Nanjing University. & nbsp;<p>

 

The extreme nature of the plan to transplant an entire species underscores the

mounting environmental costs of China & #8217;s rapid economic growth. & nbsp;<p>

 

The government has begun or is considering expensive programmes to save other

rare animals as well, including leopards, tigers and China & #8217;s most

distinctive wild animal, the panda. & nbsp;<p>

 

The dolphins have lived in the Yangtze for 25 million years. Called the

& #8220;Goddesses of the Yangtze, & #8217; & #8217; they were a traditional symbol of

peace and prosperity to Chinese living along the river & #8217;s banks. But in

recent decades, the dolphins have been decimated, most by being accidentally

entangled in fishermen & #8217;s nets and hooks. There were about 6,000 in the

1950s. & nbsp;<p>

 

& #8220;The dolphins have no chance of survival if they stay in the

river, & #8217; & #8217; said Wang Ding, deputy director of the Institute of

Hydrobiology in the central city of Wuhan. & nbsp;<p>

 

The institute will oversee the relocation effort, which Wang said has been

approved by the Ministry of Forestry and could begin next year. The 50 million

yuan (RM22.8mil) plan would hire 50 professional fishermen in boats to search a

1,700km stretch of the Yangtze and capture the dolphins using nets. & nbsp;<p>

 

The animals would then be released in the newly created Tian & #8217;erzhou

nature reserve in Hubei province. The reserve is built around a 21km segment of

the Yangtze that was left behind when the main river changed course. & nbsp;<p>

 

The reserve is already home to 20 finless porpoises, another threatened aquatic

mammal found in the Yangtze and elsewhere in Asia. Wang said the porpoises,

which were put there on a trial basis by the biology institute in Wuhan, have

thrived. & nbsp;<p>

 

Critics say the Yangtze River dolphins aren & #8217;t as hardy as the porpoises.

They note that only one has survived in captivity, at the institute in Wuhan.

Attempts to breed the 24-year-old male, named Qi Qi, have failed. Three

prospective mates died soon after capture, as have all other caught

dolphins. & nbsp;<p>

 

Some experts also doubt whether the captive population would offer a big enough

gene pool. They say inbreeding could become a problem. & nbsp;<p>

 

The plan & #8217;s backers say mammal populations in captivity have been

successfully increased in the past. They point to the reintroduction into the

wild in the late 1980s of Pere David & #8217;s deer, another species found only in

China. & nbsp;<p>

 

The deer was hunted to extinction in the wild 1,000 years ago, but a few dozen

survived until modern times in the pleasure parks of China & #8217;s emperors, and

later in European zoos. & nbsp;<p>

 

& #8220;It & #8217;s not a perfect solution, but it & #8217;s the best option we

have, & #8217; & #8217; Wang said. & #8220;And there & #8217;s no time to

lose. & #8217; & #8217; & #8211; AP & nbsp;<p>

 

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