The Chinese River Dolphin, the Whitefin Dolphin, and the Yangtze Dolphin, the Baiji is NOT the Chinese White Dolphin. This rare animal has become “functionally extinct” because of China’s industrialization. Late in 2006. researchers were unable to find any of these mid-size dolphins, but in August of 2007 a Chinese photographer captured an image of what might be a Bainji. There are anywhere between 0 and 13 Yangtze River Dolphins left in the world.
This river dolphin is pale blue to gray on the dorsal (back) side, white on the ventral (belly) side. It has a long and slightly-upturned beak with 31-36 conical teeth on either jaw. Its dorsal fin is low and triangular in shape, and resembles a light-colored flag when the dolphin swims just below the surface of the murky Yangtze River, hence the name "white-flag" dolphin. It has smaller eyes compared to oceanic dolphins. A mature Yangtze river dolphin is about 8 ft (2.5 m) long and weighs about 500 pounds (220 kg).
