Xu Yaping holds a goose in his arms as he patrols the waters of Dongting Lake with his volunteer crew in Yueyang, Hunan Province. Photo: IC

Even before the sun rises and hours after it sets, Xu Yaping can be found in a diesel engine-powered iron boat along the waters of the Yangtze River near Yueyang, Hunan Province, where he spends nearly all of his spare time patrolling the waters to help the survival of jiangtun, or the finless porpoise.

Known in China as the "Panda in freshwater," only 120 of the endangered species are left in Yueyang's Dongting Lake, while just some 1,000 remain in the Yangtze River, mostly in Hunan and Jiangxi provinces, according to scientists in Hunan Province, Changsha Evening News reported earlier this year.

Experts warn that unless something is done to reverse the situation, jiangtun, or the only porpoise without a true dorsal fin, will be extinct in China within 10 years.

The latter is a statistic that encourages the 47-year-old reporter at Hunan Daily's Yueyang office into the kind of action that involves more than just his pen. For nearly two years, Xu - nicknamed "Papa of the finless porpoise" by his crew - has been circling the waters with a crew of volunteers, going out on the river to check that fisherman are not putting the finless porpoise in harm with electro-fishing or fishing traps, and that human activity is not disturbing the migration routes of these animals.

"We have to stop illegal behavior that destroys the ecological environment of the Yangtze River ourselves," Xu told the Global Times. "Because if we let illegal fishing and illegal dredging work continue along the river then the finless porpoise might not be around for much longer."

Mostly volunteers belong to Yueyang Yangtze Finless Porpoise Conservation Society, which was formed by Xu in January last year in a bid to protect the finless porpoise.

Xu said that his institution's main goal is to persuade the central government to give the finless porpoise first-grade State protection, raising the species from its current second-grade standing. The members have been working on obtaining the designation for almost two years, writing letters and providing materials to relevant government departments and cooperating with environmentalists and NGOs to promote the cause - but so far, no luck.

"The related government departments should accelerate its speed of raising the protection level for jiangtun as the finless porpoise don't have the time to wait for us," he said, noting that baiji, a close relative of the finless porpoise, was already declared extinct in 2002.

Finless porpoise.  Photo: IC

'Arduous fight'

Xu fell in love with the finless porpoise many years ago, from his days spent working as a waiter at Yueyang Hotel, before he joined his paper some 20 years ago.

"I used to sit by the river a lot and watch the finless porpoise leap and play in the water, dashing this way and that, sparkling in the river under the sun," said Xu. "They looked beautiful, with their smiling mouths."

But the Xiangyin native, who grew up in the county administered by Yueyang, did not start thinking seriously about the plight of the finless porpoise until 2008, when he learned that the death rate of the finless porpoise had been spiking - and finally when he could bare no more news of the worsening situation, he knew he had to do something.

Since establishing his group of volunteers, Xu has delved deep into the cause, writing an increasing number of stories on the situation of the finless porpoise in the past 20 some months, a number of which have been picked up by People's Daily.

As more people have become aware of the issue, Xu has used his knowledge to even lobby officials to be tougher on law enforcement for illegal fishing or dredging, convincing them of the financial gains to developing an ecological economy.

In May, Xu's efforts paid off when Yueyang's Party secretary, Qing Jianwei, was convinced to help fight for the finless porpoise and joined the society, partaking in a symbolic patrol outing to show the government's support for the cause.

Since their cooperation began, they have carried out hundreds of campaigns against the illegal activity and have helped local fishing authorities capture a total of 54 boats operating against the law.

"Every fight is arduous," said Xu.

Conflicting interests

Xu has also spent 1 million yuan ($164,100) on the public advocacy of the finless porpoise, buying advertisements in local media on credit - a bill he has yet to pay off.

"Local authorities seldom make public service announcements for the protection of wildlife," he said. "So, someone has to do it or the public won't know about the importance of protecting them."

But despite his efforts, which also include a fish-breeding initiative to encourage local fishermen to continue with their livelihood in a way that keeps jiangtun out of danger - a project that even his 70 something father supports by guarding the area from skeptics or those who want to see the project fail, Xu has faced opposition from the community, with some people also accusing him of neglecting his duties as a journalist due to his time wasted on "petty wildlife conservation."

Though Xu has shrugged off the accusations, getting out of harm's way from the enemies he's created along the way has proven a little harder. He's even wound up in emergency treatment after pursuing a rough group of illegal fishermen.

"We have offended the interests of some powerful people," said Xu. "But I'm not scared of them, and they won't stop us from continuing our work to save the finless porpoise."

But it seems that Xu's wife doesn't see eye to eye with him.

"I'm always trying to persuade him to slow down because there are dangerous people out there who don't like what he's doing," Xu's wife, who preferred not to be named, told the Global Times. "I wish he would think about his own personal safety more - I mean, eventually the finless porpoise will die out anyway."

Acknowledging the pressure he faces at home and with the public, Xu admits that sometimes, it can feel like it's just him against the world.

"It's the authorities' and society's duty to protect the finless porpoise, but sometimes both sides neglect their duties," he said. "That's when it really comes down to me - and it's when I really need to step up the most."