a shutterbug in east china's jiangxi province has been devoted to protecting the finless porpoise in poyang lake, china's largest freshwater lake.
the freshwater porpoise with no dorsal fin is native to china and has lived here for 25 million years.
the population of the aquatic mammal has experienced a sharp decrease over the past decades due to overfishing and human activities.
things began to change after china began a 10-year fishing moratorium from the beginning of 2020 in 332 conservation areas in the yangtze river basin.
due to the ban, more than 100,000 fishermen from over 300 fishing villages situated around the poyang lake had to end their traditional roles and embrace new identities ashore.
on feb. 4, 2021, china revised its list of endangered wild animals, elevating the conservation of 65 types of wild animals, including the yangtze finless porpoise, to the strictest level-one protection from second-highest.
