The first results of the fishing ban in the Yangtze River, the finless porpoise is active on the water, why is the deadline for ten years? Can't it be longer
At around 9:00 a.m. on March 23, 2022, fishery law enforcement officers near the Yangtze River were conducting daily inspections when they suddenly found a group of finless porpoises playing on the surface of the Yangtze River. Such a scene shocked the staff very much. It is rare for a group of finless porpoises to play in the river.
The staff in the Yangtze River Basin recalled: After the state promulgated the fishing ban policy, we rarely saw finless porpoises on the river surface, let alone seeing groups of finless porpoises, only a few finless porpoises on the river surface.
The finless porpoise that appeared on the river this time is no less rare than the giant panda. The finless porpoise is also known as the "living fossil of the Yangtze River ecology". Its length is generally about one meter two, but the longest is also about one meter nine. The finless porpoise is relatively small, with a light gray or grayish-white body, and its lifespan is about 20 years. At the same time, finless porpoises have very high requirements for water quality.
Finless porpoises are often active in the Yangtze River basin, and only good water quality can support their normal life in the water. Therefore, the finless porpoise is also known as the "Yangtze River Ecological Barometer". Since the finless porpoise has such a good effect on the improvement of the ecological environment, why is it facing extinction?
Judging from the survival and development process of the finless porpoise, the finless porpoise only preys on some fish and shrimp, which is relatively common in the Yangtze River Basin, and the finless porpoise should not face the risk of endangerment. According to the speculation, the following speculations are more reliable. First of all, the finless porpoise is a species with a strong sense of family concept. Once the cubs are captured by humans, their parents will not escape alone in most cases, which leads to the capture of the whole family.
Second, finless porpoises are very sensitive to the environment, and once the environment fluctuates, they will face greater survival risks. However, with the development and progress of society in the Yangtze River Basin, the shipping industry has gradually developed, and the noise and propellers of ships are the biggest threats to the finless porpoise. This is very likely to cause the finless porpoise to face an endangered situation.
In the video taken by witnesses, we can see that there are four or five finless porpoises near the estuary. In response to this phenomenon, Cao Wenxuan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, believes that the emergence of groups of finless porpoises on the river is closely related to the country's "ten-year fishing ban" policy.
In January 2019, the state implemented a fishing ban policy in the waters of the Yangtze River Basin. The policy will be implemented from New Year's Day in 2020 and will be implemented as planned for a period of ten years. The policy clearly points out that large-scale overfishing of fish is prohibited, and the behavior of electrocuting fish is severely cracked down, creating a favorable environment for fish growth in the Yangtze River Basin.
The active implementation of the policy has led to fishermen no longer overfishing fish, which not only maintains the diversity of fish species, but also gives a sense of security to rare species such as finless porpoises. They believe that they are no longer threatened, and naturally have the courage to boldly appear in front of humans.
It is for this reason that people are so pleasantly surprised to see groups of finless porpoises in the Yangtze River Basin.
In addition to the appearance of groups of finless porpoises in the Yangtze River Basin, a strange incident has recently occurred near the Yangtze River in Yichang, Hubei. A fisherman caught a copperhead fish weighing 70 pounds on the riverside, attracting many people to watch.
According to eyewitness accounts, the copperhead fish was at least 1.6 meters long. The copperhead fish is also known as the scorpion fish, also known as the water tiger. This kind of fish can be said to be the most ferocious carnivorous fish in the Yangtze River. It is not common in the Yangtze River Basin, especially this copperhead fish with a length of about 1.6 meters is very rare.
However, when the fishing ban was first promulgated, some fish lovers and fishermen were against it, and most people thought ten years was too long . But taking the appearance of copperhead fish as an example, it was very rare to see copperhead fish before the implementation of the national fishing ban policy.
This further verifies the benefits of the fishing ban period, and many places in the Yangtze River Basin have promulgated relevant documents to impose certain restrictions on anglers, such as: not using illegal tools for fishing; not fishing in areas where fishing is prohibited. Today, the appearance of copperhead fish has made people see that the fishing ban policy is beneficial to the protection and development of the ecological environment.
Therefore, with the implementation of the policy, we can see that ten years is not a long time, and it can even be said that it is far from enough . In the years since the implementation of this policy, many species in the Yangtze River Basin have not been fundamentally liberated, but their living conditions have improved.
Many people say that 2021 is the beginning of the "ten-year fishing ban", but in just one year, we have seen different faces of rare species. This is not only something to congratulate, but also the most important thing in the fishing ban policy. Good illustration.
So why doesn't the state enact a longer period to make up for this shortcoming?
In fact, the ten-year formulation is planned by the state according to the current development status of China's ecological environment. It takes basic time for most rare species in the Yangtze River to form an intergenerational cycle. Ten years have given the ecological environment of the Yangtze River a good recovery period and a good breeding period for rare species.
Once a better cycle can be formed within ten years, it will also be a big turning point for the sustainable development of mankind. Will there still be rare species in the Yangtze River Basin by then? This is something we can look forward to.
At the same time, nature itself is a cycle . Rare species need a good environmental foundation, and a good environment can promote species abundance and enhance biodiversity. The finless porpoise is an indicator of water ecology, and its appearance means that the ecological environment in the region is gradually becoming better. This also gives people an inspiration: as biodiversity reaches a certain level, is it possible for species that have disappeared (such as white sturgeon, white black dolphin, and wild Chinese sturgeon) to reappear?
Such a virtuous cycle is also more beneficial than harmful to human beings. For human beings, as a part of nature, protecting nature is the obligation of human beings. While protecting nature, human beings will also receive corresponding feedback from nature, which is of great significance to promoting sustainable human development.
We still don't know how the 10-year fishing ban will develop in the future. After all, no one can predict how the ecological environment of the basin will change in the future. However, the appearance of finless porpoises in groups and the discovery of long copperhead fish tell people good news: the water quality of the Yangtze River Basin is gradually improving.