News Animals

Ancient poems document the decline of the Yangtze finless porpoise

The animal’s range has declined by about 65 percent over the past 1,400 years

A Yangtze finless porpoise looking towards the camera through the glass in a dolphinarium at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The Yangtze finless porpoise (shown) is critically endangered. Ancient Chinese poems can help researchers trace its decline over time, a new study reports.

Chaoqun Wang

By McKenzie Prillaman

For at least 1,400 years, poets in China have penned pieces about the Yangtze River’s sights and sounds. Now, scientists are using those artworks to reconstruct an animal’s past.

Ancient poems can help track the vanishing range of the Yangtze finless porpoise, researchers report May 5 in Current Biology.