Dante
A sad day. The Chinese Paddlefish (Psephurus gladius) is believed to have gone extinct in the polluted and impounded Yangtze River system somewhere between 2005 and 2010. Adding to the issues of polluted waters and dams, overfishing in the Yangtze has been a problem. These spectacular fishes (image not mine – from an online source, photographer unknown) grew to 3m length (~9.8 feet) and attained masses of 300kg (~660lbs). In typical fashion, the media reporting on this presumed extinction have taken questionable records of size and suggested they were well documented (7m (~23 feet) and 500kg (1,100lbs)). Note: many media images of the “Chinese Paddlefish” are actually images of the American Paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) – see my images here. Both species are related and are in the family Polyodontidae. The smaller American Paddlefish has a top-end size of roughly 2.2m (~7.2 feet) and 90.7kg (~200lbs). Both species have been of conservation concern. The American Paddlefish has declined in some portions of its traditional range and disappeared from other parts of said range. There is a sport fishing culture around this species but not all states allow it to be legally fished for. Culture of the American Paddlefish has been successful and USFWS facilities are quite skilled with the task. I’m assuming that any attempts with the culture of Chinese Paddlefish faltered. Paddlefishes are now officially down to the one single species. As we lose the threads of our food webs, entire communities will unravel. The collapse of entire ecosystems will impact human populations; food supplies for millions could come into question. Biodiversity is key and critical to the survival of humans – these are resources worth protecting and now is the time to fight for them. ... See more
