A post stamp featuring the Chinese paddlefish. [File photo] Chinese paddlefish, a flagship species in the Yangtze River, may have become extinct, said a fishery expert. It is probable that the Chinese paddlefish are now extinct, a situation which experts are reviewing, Wei Qiwei, the chief scientist with the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, told ThePaper on Sunday. The fish has not been seen in the wild since 2003, nor do artificially bred individuals exist, said Wei at a forum on the protection of biological resources in the Yangtze held in Wuhan, Hubei province. The Chinese paddlefish is one of the world's largest freshwater fish, which can grow up to 7 meters long. It is an endemic species in China under first-level national protection. The ancestors of the Chinese paddlefish date back to the Cretaceous period more than 100 million years ago. Thus it is sometimes referred to as the Giant Panda of the Rivers because of its rarity. From the middle of last century the population of the Chinese paddlefish has declined rapidly due to overfishing, habitat degradation, and pollution. The construction of Gezhouba dam in 1981 on the Yangtze River also created a barrier to the migrating fish, contributing to its sharp decline, said Wei. To save the species, a research team led by him is experimenting on modern reproduction methods such as using surrogates to rear the fish in captivity. Other techniques include preserving genetic materials and cloning. The team has also completed the genome sequencing of the Chinese paddlefish and is researching the data. Related: Authorities join hands to protect Yangtze rubber band bracelet makersilicone bracelets customdebossed wristbandcustom silicone medical alert braceletscheap silicone wristbands canada
BEIJING - Chinese researchers have developed a nano material using waste cartons that can remove a toxic heavy metal from water.The breakthrough has provided a new means to control heavy metal contamination and recycling of waste cartons.Incidents of heavy metal contamination of water have occurred frequently in China in recent years, and hexavalent chromium, a chemical compound of metal chromium and major cause of heavy metal pollution, can lead to significant risks to human health. There is an urgent need for low cost and high efficiency technology to deal with heavy metal water contamination in China.Researchers used high temperatures and pressure to create the nano material from waste cartons. The material can be coated with nano-scale iron which can effectively remove hexavalent chromium from water, control the migration of the compound in water sources, and prevent it from being absorbed by plants.The research, led by Wu Zhengyan at Hefei Institute of Physical Science under Chinese Academy of Sciences, was recently published in the American Chemistry Society academic journal ACS Langmuir.
