AI system monitors endangered Yangtze finless porpoises

A system referred to as the "super AI babysitter" is now being used to monitor the endangered Yangtze finless porpoise in Wuhan, Hubei province.

The AI system uses an algorithm to identify the daily activities and mother-baby interactions of the species via video. Data from the images is compiled into standardized growth profiles that map out what care each animal needs.

According to Hao Yujiang, director of the Yangtze Cetacean Breeding and Conservation Center of the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, the system can automatically recognize how the mothers breastfeed, where the calves cling to their mothers for rides, the position of each animal as they swim in a group, and their general habits surrounding going to the surface for air. It is backed by a powerful computing capacity, which helps it analyze the videos and effectively reduce the need for time-consuming manual observation.

Wang Kexiong, a researcher from the institute, said the bond between mother porpoises and their calves is critical to survival rates. By monitoring the duration and frequency of breastfeeding, caretakers can assess how healthy that relationship is. So far, the new system is helping, having "achieved a monitoring accuracy of nearly 90 percent" that makes it easier for researchers to protect newborns systematically.

The Yangtze finless porpoise is seen by many as an icon of the Yangtze River ecosystem. Thanks to its naturally upturned mouth, it has earned the nickname "the Smile of the Yangtze". Given its scarce population, it is also known as the "Giant Panda of the Water". Its population size serves as a direct indicator of the health of the Yangtze's aquatic environment.

Finless porpoises stay hidden underwater most of the time. Traditional monitoring methods, such as ship-based visual observation and passive acoustic monitoring, are highly restricted by weather, shipping traffic, and surface water visibility. Large-scale, round-the-clock monitoring has therefore been difficult to achieve, making it hard to gain an accurate understanding of their activity patterns and breeding conditions.

The number of Yangtze finless porpoises rose to 1,426 in 2025, up 177 since 2022, according to the figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Video by Chen Meiling and Liu Kun