After 10 years of fishing ban in the Yangtze River, how many fish can there be in the river? Why can't the fishing ban be lifted?

In the past, human's ability to transform nature was very limited, and almost no species was extinct because of human activities. It was not until after the Industrial Revolution that mankind's use of tools changed dramatically, and by using these tools, mankind had a tremendous impact on nature. One of the more special ones is the impact of human's endless fishing on rivers, lakes and seas.

Not surprisingly, overfishing has caused a large number of fish to become endangered species, and many fish have even become extinct because of this. Not only that, the construction of various dams has also had a profound impact on some migratory fish. In order to protect biological diversity, the 10-year fishing ban has begun. What effects have been produced so far?

The first thing to note is that the 10-year fishing ban is not limited to the Yangtze River basin, but covers one river, two lakes and seven major rivers. The most important of these is the Yangtze River, the largest river in China and the third largest in the world. According to incomplete statistics, there were more than 4,300 kinds of aquatic organisms in the Yangtze River basin in the past, including more than 400 kinds of fish, and more than 180 kinds of unique fish. In fact, as early as 2003, there was a so-called fishing moratorium, but due to the lax implementation, the effect was not obvious. The 10-year fishing moratorium, which only started in the past few years, has indeed produced obvious effects.

In the past, long-term fishing has caused a vicious circle in the number of fish in the Yangtze River. Take our common "four major fish" as an example, their spawning volume has increased directly from the peak of 120 billion fish. It has dropped to about 1 billion tails, a drop of about 120 times. This result has led to a vicious fishing behavior, the more fishing the less, the more thorough the fishing methods are, so there is a situation of exhausting the pond and fishing.

Based on this vicious long-term fishing, scientists estimate that it will take at least a 10-year fishing ban to restore various fish species in the Yangtze River to relatively normal levels. Because of the 10-year break, the fish can reproduce for about three generations.

Although there is a fishing ban period, many people think that the construction of the dam directly led to the extinction of some migratory fish. One of the more famous ones is the Chinese sturgeon, a very cherished fish that was once almost extinct due to fishing. As a creature that grows in seawater and lays eggs in freshwater, they swim from the Yangtze River to the sea every year, and then swim back to the river from the sea. The dams along the way will have a great impact on this migratory fish. For this reason, scientists have already started artificial cultivation and have achieved certain results. There are also natural cultivation bases around the dam. It is believed that after the 10-year fishing ban, the number of Chinese sturgeons will be greatly restored.

There is also the white sturgeon, as a functionally extinct creature, it cannot be artificially cultivated at all. At present, its population is not enough to sustain natural reproduction, and this 10-year fishing ban may provide a chance for the recovery of the white sturgeon. In addition, there is the Yangtze sturgeon, whose artificial breeding technology has completely broken through. This is a fish that does not need to migrate. I believe that this fishing ban will definitely restore it. In addition to these, many fish are also facing a similar situation.

To say that the dam caused the extinction of migratory organisms is actually not knowing why. Although the dam will have an impact, it is not a big one, and excessive artificial fishing is the culprit. Excessive fishing, in addition to directly catching fish, will also deplete the food of some fish, which will lead to the destruction of the biological chain, resulting in species reduction or extinction.

Of course, fundamentally, human appetite has led to the endangerment or extinction of these fish. But biological diversity, species diversity, and genetic diversity are also very important, so artificial breeding is undoubtedly the best choice. The 10-year fishing ban will allow the Yangtze River's food chain to recover.

First, producers such as algae will absorb nutrients in the water, and then some algal organisms and plankton will be proliferated, which not only ensures a reduction in the number of algae, but also provides food for small fish. In the absence of fishing, small fish will begin to multiply, and large fish will feed on small fish to maintain the population. Not only that, the excrement of fish will positively promote the reproduction of algae, Finally, a complete and healthy food chain is formed.

The 10-year fishing ban has reached its third year. After two years of recovery, how is the current fish recovery situation in the Yangtze River?

In the Yichang River Basin, people filmed the scene of finless porpoise leaping out of the river. Sonar detection results show that there are already a lot of fish in the Yangtze River today. Not only that, in the 60-kilometer Chinese sturgeon reserve in Yichang, scientists detected more than ten signals of Chinese sturgeon in one day. Not only that, in some watersheds, the number of unique fish that can be collected has risen from 32 before the ban to 37, which is only the effect of one year.

Although good news is coming, I would like to appeal to everyone not to fish privately, or to use any cruel and destructive methods such as grid fishing. You must know that protecting the biodiversity of the Yangtze River is not only for ourselves, but also for our future generations!