Vaquita fact file
Scientific name- Phocoena sinus
Length- up to 1.5 m
Weight- up to 55 kg
Lifespan- up to 20 years
Where it is found- Northern part of the Gulf of California (shown below)
The vaquita is a mammal and a member of the porpoise family, less than 20 vaquitas remain in the wild making them the most endangered marine species to exist.
The biggest threat to this species are gillnets. Gillnets are a type of netting that hang vertically in the water, they are designed to allow fish to get their head in but not their body, as they try to retreat their gills are caught in the netting making them trapped. In the Gulf of Mexico lives a fish called the totoaba and these gillnets are used to trap these totoaba however the vaquita frequently become stuck in them too and drown (remember they are mammals and need air, just like whales)
The Mexican government has worked with various organisations to stop the use of gillnet fishing in the vaquita habitat however the illegal fishing of the totoaba has increased since 2011 due to the demand for its swim bladder by China. Fishermen can earn up to 9000$ for a kilogram of totoaba swim bladder, this fishing has caused a loss by 50% of the vaquita population per year.
In April 2015, a 2-year ban was announced on the use of gillnets throughout the vaquita habitat however more recently, the Mexican government announced a new agreement with the conservation group Sea Shepherd. The local authorities and the conservation group will extend protection protocols to the totoaba and also expand the current protected zone by 60% in which fishing is forbidden, what is to be noted however that this still does not prevent illegal fishing for which the regulations should be stricter.
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