alternativenewstome1

by  N.Morgan A team of Mexican biologists warns that one of the smallest and most critically endangered marine mammals, the vaquita porpoise, is likely to go extinct by June. Namely, according to experts, the total population of the rare mammal, which is found exclusively in the Gulf of California, has been thinned out to about 22. The small, five-foot-long cetaceans feed on fish and squid, and due to their snub stouts, dark eye patches, and smiling black lips, they have been referred to as a “marine Mona Lisa.” One of the main causes for their extinction is the ongoing trafficking of the rare totoaba fish, whose swim bladder is highly valued in China as a delicacy, and they share their habitat with it. According to the journalist Ben Goldfarb, these swim bladders can cost up to $100,000 per kilogram in mainland China and Hong Kong. Even though this fishing has been banned since 1975, poaching is rampant. Vaquitas easily get entangled and drown in illegal nets. C...