The Yangtze River paddlefish is extinct

R.I.P. Chinese paddlefish (Psephurus gladius).

Yesterday’s announcement of a 10-year ban on fishing on the Yangtze River came too late for one of the great river’s native species. The South China Morning Post reports:

The Chinese paddlefish, one of the world’s largest freshwater fish species and a native of the Yangtze River system, has been declared extinct.

‘Also known as the Chinese swordfish, the species grows up to 7 meters long and is believed to have vanished between 2005 and 2010. Chinese scientists made the announcement in a research paper published in Science of the Total Environment last week.

Meanwhile in Beijing, supreme leader Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 presided over the sixth meeting of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs, where the main theme was the “eco-conservation of the Yellow River basin,” as well as the development of the “Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle,” according to the top story on Xinhua News Agency’s website (in English, Chinese).