Mexican Poachers Ignore Fishing Ban as Endangered Vaquita Nears Extinction Taylor Hill - TakePart
go to original July 22, 2015

Sea Shepherd captures rare footage of elusive Vaquita during first sighting since 2013 (Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

In April, it looked like the world’s smallest and most endangered porpoise was getting the help it needed from the Mexican government to avoid extinction.

A ban on gill-net fishing - the leading cause of death for the vaquita - was put in place in the marine mammal’s habitat in the northern part of the Gulf of California, giving hope that the last 100 of the species might survive.

But Greenpeace activists patrolling the gulf said on Tuesday that they came across multiple gill nets set up in the banned area, which they photographed and reported to officials.

Fishers use the nets to catch another endangered species - the totoaba, whose bladder is coveted in China as a delicacy. Totoaba swim bladders reportedly fetch as much as $4,000 a pound for Mexican fishers, and a single bladder can sell for $15,000 in Hong Kong shops.

“Seventy percent of vaquita mortality is caused by illegal gill nets, so real control and enforcement is needed,” said Greenpeace Mexico campaign manager Sylvia Díaz. “The Mexican authorities need to take it seriously and do their job.”

Read the rest at TakePart

Related: 'More Lucrative Than Cocaine': Retailers Cashing in on Mexico's Endangered Totoaba (South China Morning Post)

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