Optimism rises over fate of the finless porpoise

Recent research may provide good news about the endangered species, as Cheng Si and Liu Kun report from Wuhan.

The rate of decline in the number of finless porpoises in the Yangtze River may have slowed in the past six years, according to experts in the field.

Wang Ding, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Hydrobiology, said official statistics will not be released until March, but recent research may indicate positive steps in the conservation of the species, which is classified as "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.