VANISHING VAQUITA
Scientists believe that there may be fewer than 30 vaquitas left in the world. Found only in the Upper Gulf of California, the vaquita has become the world’s most endangered marine mammal. Some 90 per cent of the population has been lost since 2011, largely because they are caught in banned gillnets used to catch another endangered species, the totoaba fish whose swim bladders are used in traditional Chinese medicine. International pressure has called for an immediate implementation of a permanent ban on gillnets in the hope of protecting the remaining population. At a recent press conference Maria Jose Villanueva, director of strategy and science for WWF Mexico said: "If we don't do something today, the vaquita could be extinct by 2018. Losing it would be like losing a piece of Mexico."