CHINA on Monday began a survey of the number and distribution of the endangered finless porpoise in the Bohai and Yellow seas, in preparation for setting up a reserve in the area.

Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences Yellow Sea fishery research institute will send a survey ship to the Yellow Sea on May 24 for the 10-day study.

The scientists will collect data on the porpoise population and distribution, as well as temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen levels and pH value of the water.

The data will be used for the protection of finless porpoise in China’s coastal areas, said the institution.

Finless porpoise, a dolphin-like mammal with an iconic “grin” on its face, has three subspecies in China’s Yangtze River, the Bohai and Yellow seas and South China Sea.

The population in the Yangtze is the most critical at around 1,000, due to pollution, over-fishing and river traffic. The population in the Bohai and Yellow seas has dropped to around 20 percent the level of the 1980s. (Xinhua)