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Spreading the word about these beautiful little porpoise is the 1st step in saving them from extinction. There is still HOPE! Join our Facebook Fan Page and click on the "Like" button. Thank you!

The vaquita porpoise is considered by many to be the rarest and most-endangered species of marine mammal in the world. It is Critically Endangered with only 245 remaining in 2008 and probably less than 200 now! (Gerrodette et al. 2011). It is the smallest of only seven species of true porpoises, and is the only one that lives in warm waters of the eastern Pacific Ocean. It is found in a tiny area in the extreme northern Gulf of California, near Baja California, Mexico.

In the last few decades, the small population has plummeted by about 8% per year, as gillnets set for fish and shrimp kill more porpoises than are born annually. These “invisible” gillnets trap the vaquitas and they drown. If rapid progress is not made, the vaquita may be extinct in a few short years. The very perilous situation of the vaquita has been recognized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), International Whaling Commission, Mexican Government, and United States Government.

Yes! Unlike some endangered species that have no place left to live in the wild, the vaquita's home in the Gulf of California is clean and healthy. The only real problem is the gillnets that entangle and kill vaquitas. If these can be moved out of the small area where vaquitas occur, the species will likely recover. We can save the vaquita!! Learn how you can help the vaquita!

Vaquita Updates & Publications:

• Check out a very impressive blog by 10-year old, Aidan, from Pennsylvania called the "V-log" and give him some much deserved feedback. Great job!!!
• The workshop at the Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, in Tampa, FL, USA, entitled: “Saving the Vaquita: Are We Doing All We Can?” was very successful. For information visit SMM Workshop Description.
• Jefferson, T.A. and D. Kutz. 2011. ¡Viva Vaquita!: A Race Against TIme to Save an Elusive Yet Endangered Marine Mammal. The Explorer's Journal (Special Report) 89(2):12-13.
• Visit ¡Viva Vaquita! & Partners' Accomplishments 2009 to 2011
• Post on Vaquita.tv – Future Monitoring Programs: Lorenzo Rojas Bracho gives an update of the acoustic monitoring programs
• Chris Johnson (earthOCEAN) launches his film entitled, “Vaquita – Last Chance for the Desert Porpoise“
• Learn about the vaquita habitat and prey, to the various factors threatening them via CEDO's publication "The Vaquita of the Gulf of California" (download 5.4MB)
• Download Whalewatcher: Journal of the American Cetacean Society, 2010. Jefferson, T. (ed). Porpoises in Peril: The vaquita and its relatives. vol 39. No. 1 (2 MB)

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since 1 Nov 2009

Last Update 1/7/12