Sri Lanka, Aug. 21 -- A complete fishing ban on China's Yangtze River is helping scientists in their efforts to save the critically endangered finless porpoise. The species, which is the last large aquatic animal remaining in the Yangtze, has seen its population numbers increase for the first time in decades.

Scientists at the Institute of Hydrobiology in Wuhan are working to prevent the finless porpoise from suffering the same fate as other extinct species that once inhabited the river, such as the river dolphin. The current population of porpoises is estimated to be around 1,200.

Professor Wang Xi, from the Institute, told the BBC that the finless porpoise is "the only top-level predator left in the river" and that its numbers reflect...