Baiji: China's unseen victim

The baiji, or Chinese river dolphin (Lipotes vexillifer) ranks among the most endangered mammals on earth, and is certainly the most endangered cetacean. The population is estimated at less than 100 individuals.

The threat? This animal lives in the Yangtze river, one of the most polluted waterways on Earth. Concreted river banks, collisions with ships and contaminated and depleted fish stocks on which it preys have brought the species to the brink of extinction. China's Three Gorges Dam project is just the latest in a long list of man-made factors playing against this species.

A number of new projects aim to breed the baiji captively for reintroduction:

"The long-term plan would be to re-introduce them to the Yangtze, but only when the prospects of them thriving there have risen."

But when would that be? China's leaders have repeatedly shown that they value economic growth and international prestige far more than preserving their environment. I recorded but have not yet had a chance to watch the third in the BBC 2's China documentary series that featured environmental concerns (aired last night). The effort we put into preserving the environment in the West seems dwarfed by China's insatiable appetite for the world's natural resources. Scary stuff.