Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/vaquita-porpoise/

Is there still time to save the world’s smallest porpoises?

Vaquita porpoises now number only 10, most of them have died from getting entangled in gill nets used by fishermen in Mexico to catch shrimp.

These smallest porpoises, measuring just up to 5 feet in length, can only be found in a very tiny territory at the northern edge of the Gulf of California. But, in spite of their limited range, they are still seriously threatened by human activities.

Due to their very few surviving species, experts and other entities are deeply concerned that the vaquitas will soon become extinct. Few remaining species mean that they are susceptible to inbreeding depression that is caused by low genetic diversity.

Great genetic diversity is important to a species’ survival and for them to be prolific. Genetic mutation is minimized through outcross mating systems, and resilience is attained through biological variation.

Considering their number and low biological diversity, it appears that the 10 surviving vaquita porpoises are already doomed.

However, a new study published in the journal Science has given the world hope that these porpoises could still survive and thrive. According to the findings, the vaquitas’ low biological diversity has been going on for so long that there is a big chance that their offspring may still have the strength and resilience to adapt.

“It’s a really exciting study because it gives scientists new tools to ask whether this species is really doomed to extinction because of genetics, or whether we should be worrying about other things,” said Barbara Taylor of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and one of the authors of the study.

And yet, it also poses a real challenge to Mexico which has long prohibited the use of gill nets for catching shrimps but the ban is hardly enforced according to Taylor.

Ten years ago, they almost succeeded in convincing the locals to use sustainable fishing gear that keeps vaquita porpoises safe. But with the discovery of a huge foreign market for totoaba, which like the vaquitas can only be found in the Gulf of California, gill nets became very popular again.

That market is China where totoaba’s swim bladder has become a delicacy. It is also widely believed that totoaba’s swim bladder has medicinal properties albeit there is no scientific evidence to back up the claim. Currently, totoaba’s dried swim bladder sells for up to almost $50,000 per kilogram hence it is also called “cocaine of the sea”.

Now, this Mexican fish is also endangered but it is the vaquita porpoises that have been impacted the most due to the gill nets that are used to catch totoaba.

“All conservation is about changing human behavior,” said Taylor. “If that comes at an economic cost, and people can use the excuse that they’re doomed anyway, that’s bound to be a hurdle to action.”

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Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog