A shutterbug's passion for finless porpoises in the Yangtze

WUHAN — Every day, Yang He, a 64-year-old photographer, wakes up in the wee hours and drives to the banks of the Yangtze River in Yichang, Hubei province.

Upon arrival, he patiently waits there for a pod of finless porpoises to emerge from the glistening water, hoping to capture their beauty through his lens.

As a devoted admirer of the finless porpoise, this shutterbug has taken more than 100,000 vivid photos of the endangered species in the past six years.

"I know this group of finless porpoises very well. They are just like my children. As soon as one of them emerges from the water, I can tell which family it belongs to," Yang says.

The Yangtze finless porpoise is so connected to the Yangtze River that any change in the health of its environment can support or threaten its survival.

The species is under top-level national protection in the country. In 2006, surveys began to collect vital data on this endangered species. Over the last five years alone, the population of Yangtze finless porpoises has increased to 1,249, marking a rise of 23.4 percent.

A longtime resident of Yichang, Yang has observed and captured the changes with his camera.