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The vaquita, a small porpoise endemic to Mexico's Gulf of California, is the world's smallest and most endangered: small marine cetacean. With fewer than 200 left, high levels of entanglement in fishing gear threaten imminent extinction if current trends continue. Vaquitas are so rare that there are few photographs of them alive. Photograph courtesy of WWF © Thomas A. Jefferson

The government of Mexico has taken a decisive step to save the vaquita - a porpoise threatened by extinction - and to promote sustainable fisheries in the upper Gulf of California for the benefit of fishers and their families, says WWF-Mexico.

The new regulation, called an official norm, comes after over 38,000 people from 127 countries signed WWF's petition to Mexico President Enrique Peña Nieto requesting measures to save the vaquita and allow fishers to continue to earn a living through sustainable fishing.

A critically endangered vaquita caught in a gillnet.: Photograph courtesy of WWF © National Geographic Stock/Flip Nicklin/Minden Pictures / WWF

“With this norm, drift gillnets - one of the nets used in artisanal shrimping operations in which vaquitas die incidentally - will be gradually substituted, during a three year period, for selective fishing gears that do not kill this porpoise, but that allow fishers to keep earning their livelihoods.

"The effective application of the norm requires the participation and commitment of local fishermen. The optimal use of the net requires the development of particular skills; therefore, the support of the government and other organizations through training and temporary compensation programs will be essential [as the fishers learn to use them],” said Omar Vidal, WWF-Mexico’s Director General.

Shrimp fleet in harbour. Gulf of California, Mexico. Each year, anywhere between 40 and 80 vaquitas are killed: in gillnets and trawl nets used in both artisanal and commercial fishing. At the same time, the habitat of the species has been altered by damming of the Colorado River in the US. The tributaries of the Colorado River drain through the agricultural lands of Southern California and the Mexicali valley. A potential problem is the presence of organic compounds and chemical fertilizers, which concentrate in the watershed. Photograph courtesy of WWF and © Gustavo Ybarra / WWF-Canon“It represents a major opportunity to promote sustainable fisheries in the region and to protect this Mexican porpoise.

"WWF acknowledges the commitment of the Mexican government to save the vaquita from extinction,” added Vidal.

Of all cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises), the vaquita (Phocoena sinus) is the only one endemic to Mexico, has the most restricted distribution. It only lives in the upper Gulf of California. It is the smallest cetacean reaching a maximum length of 1.5 meters, and it faces the highest risk of extinction.

It is estimated that less than 200 vaquitas currently survive. Its main threat is incidental entanglement and drowning in drift gillnets used to catch shrimp, sharks, rays and other fish. Vaquitas also continues to die trapped in gillnets used in the illegal fishing of totoaba, a fish which is also endangered.

The new regulation establishes shrimping standards in Mexico and defines the fishing gears permitted in different zones of the country. 

This news is from WWF  http://wwf.panda.org/. Published on the Horizon International Solutions Site on 11 June 2013.

Notes:

For more information from WWF on the vaquita click here.  http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/cetaceans/about/vaquita/

More About the Vaquita and Its Habitat from WWF:

• A rare and elusive porpoise
• Working to eliminate bycatch
• About the Gulf of California

WWF Suggests Ways for You To Help:

• Support efforts to improve fishing gear by only buying seafood that is MSC certified. This can help to reduce the incidence of marine bycatch, which kills whales and other marine life like turtles, dolphins, and seabirds.
   
• Spread the word!