Phocoena sinus
The vaquita is a mammal belonging to the genus Porpoise in the family Porpoiseidae. It is the smallest of the cetaceans, measuring 1.3-1.5 meters in head and tail length and weighing 35-50 kilograms. Its back has a cloak-like dark gray area, its sides are grayish-white, and it has distinct dark eye rings, lip spots, and flipper stripes. Its belly is white, and the complex, muted gray patterns on its body appear almost olive or yellowish-brown under certain lighting conditions; observers typically describe this impression as “dark.” Its dorsal fin is relatively long and triangular. It has 16-22 teeth in each jaw. Due to its cute appearance, it is also sometimes called the “small-headed vaquita.”
Vaquita dolphins are mainly distributed in the northern Gulf of California, with a very narrow range and few wild observation records. They leisurely swim and forage, feeding on bony fish and squid. They are naturally timid and will avoid boats. When they surface to breathe, their movements are slow, barely creating ripples, before they quickly dive back into the water. Their exhalations are faint, but their breathing is loud and rapid. Vaquita dolphins have a distinctly seasonal breeding season, mating from mid-April to May. Female vaquita dolphins do not ovulate every year, therefore they cannot reproduce annually, giving birth to only one calf per litter, which nurses for less than a year.
Vaquita porpoises frequently die after accidentally getting caught in gillnets cast by fishermen. In April 2015, the Mexican president imposed a two-year ban on gillnet fishing in the waters inhabited by the porpoises, which was made permanent in 2017. In August 2017, China, the United States, and Mexico pledged “immediate action” at a trilateral meeting to address the endangered status of the Gulf porpoise. In December, the 69th session of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was held in Geneva, where representatives from 183 contracting parties discussed the survival of the Gulf porpoise and other endangered species. China, the United States, and Mexico announced the establishment of a high-level diplomatic mission to take effective action against poaching and smuggling to protect the Gulf porpoise.
