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Animal profile

Baiji

Lipotes vexillifer

MammaliaTurbid fresh water of a large lowland river systemCritically Endangered

Field profile

The baiji was a pale freshwater dolphin of the Yangtze with a long narrow beak, tiny eyes and a low triangular dorsal fin. It navigated turbid water almost entirely by sonar. A dedicated survey in 2006 found none, and it is widely described as functionally extinct.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-03-22

Baiji

The baiji is the first dolphin humans drove extinct

A six-week survey of the Yangtze in 2006 covering the species' entire historic range found no baiji. It was the first cetacean species to be lost through human activity, and it disappeared without a single deliberate hunting programme against it.

Read with evidence →

Baiji | Daily Animal Facts