River dolphins are among the most endangered cetaceans. Pollution, fishing bycatch, and habitat degradation threaten their survival, while individual welfare suffers from human-caused injuries.
River dolphins are uniquely vulnerable because they inhabit freshwater ecosystems that are intensively used and heavily polluted by human communities. Individual river dolphins that survive entanglement in fishing gear often do so with severe injuries — deep net cuts, fin damage, and infection. Noise from boat traffic disrupts echolocation, the primary sensory system of dolphins in turbid rivers. Pollution causes skin lesions and immune suppression. The baiji's extinction stands as a permanent warning about the consequences of treating river ecosystems as industrial resources. The welfare of surviving river dolphin populations depends on reducing human pressures: banning harmful fishing gear, establishing marine protected areas within rivers, and reducing industrial pollution. The animals cannot adapt quickly enough — human behavior must change.