Making 'Smiling Angels' smile again

Protections have resulted in the rise of the Yangtze finless porpoise population

Known as "Smiling Angels", the Yangtze finless porpoise is the unique flagship species of the Yangtze River Basin, and is widely believed to be an important natural indicator of the health of the Yangtze River ecosystem.

However, for decades, the numbers declined dramatically due to habitat loss, overfishing and climate change.

In recent years, that has begun to change. The turnaround would not have been possible without the efforts made by the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. At the suggestion of the institute, the Tian'ezhou National Nature Reserve was established in Hubei province in 1992.