Known as the Panda of the Sea because of the dark rings around its eyes, the smallest porpoise has rarely been seen alive. Found only in the Gulf of California, the vaquita is the world’s most endangered marine mammal
30 Only thirty vaquitas left despite the Mexican Navy’s efforts to intercept illegal fishing nets, according to AFP
Aquatic cocaine The animals have been dying for many years in nets that are meant to catch another endangered species—a fish called the totoaba. Smugglers ship the totoaba’s dried swim bladder, an organ which helps the fish in buoyancy, to China. Also called ‘aquatic cocaine’ the bladder is used to make soup, AFP added
$7,50,000 Hong Kong street value for 39 kg totoaba swim bladders
Poachers make as much money from the bladders as they do from cocaine, according to CNN. That’s why the bladder is dubbed ‘aquatic cocaine’
Last-ditch effort
To save the remaining vaquitas, scientists have planned to capture the specimens and put them in a safe enclosure in the Gulf of California where they can breed. But some of them oppose the move because of the risk involved. At the same time, the Mexican government’s efforts to stop illegal fishing have not been sufficient, say experts
The already desperate situation has worsened, despite existing conservation measures and current enforcement efforts. At the current rate of loss, the vaquita will likely decline to extinction by 2022, unless the current gillnet ban is maintained and effectively enforced Report by International Committee for the Recovery of the Vaquita