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Crucero Vaquita La Coalición por el Alto Golfo de California está conformada por un grupo de instituciones civiles, nacionales e internacionales, unidas con el objetivo de dar a conocer y proponer soluciones viables, legales y socialmente aceptables a la problemática que se vive en la región del Alto Golfo de California, con el fin de que los recursos naturales sean aprovechados de forma sustentable en la actualidad, y preservarlas para las próximas generaciones. En el Golfo de California existe una gran riqueza natural que debe beneficiar a todos los mexicanos, directa o indirectamente. Entre la enorme biodiversidad y las maravillas del Golfo, destaca la Vaquita Marina, especie exclusiva de México y que actualmente se encuentra en peligro de extinción. Es por esto, que la Coalición por el Alto Golfo de California organizó una nueva expedición por el hábitat de las vaquitas, con la finalidad de documentarlas y conocer aún más de cerca los riesgos que enfrenta. Organizaciones participantes: Unidos para la Conservación |  |
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More background on the Vaquita and Totoaba is appended below (extracted from wwf.org.mx, fair use, teachable moment):
SAVING FROM EXTINCTION THE ENDANGERED ENDEMIC VAQUITA, PHOCOENA SINUS, IN THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA, MÉXICO.
BACKGROUND
Genus and species
Norris and McFarland described Phocoena sinus in 1958 from three skulls collected along the northeast shore of Punta Estrella and San Felipe, Baja California, in the northern most part of the upper Gulf of California, Mexico. The specific name sinus means "bay" referring to the occurrence of the species in the Gulf of California.
Common names
Vaquita ("little cow") is the name used by local fishermen in the northern Gulf of California, Mexico. "Cochito" ("little pig") had been a commonly used vernacular name for P. sinus because it was adopted by the International Whaling Commission in 1975 (Mitchell, 1975). However "cochito" is used for more than one species of small cetaceans.
Biological Status
Both United States and Mexico laws protect the vaquita which was placed on Mexico’s endangered species list in 1978. The U.S. added the vaquita to its endangered species list in 1985. The 1972 U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act also protected the vaquita. P. sinus is considered as Endangered Species by the Mexican Government and is legally protected by the Official Mexican norms NOM-059-ECOL-1994 and NOM 012-PESC-1994. It is listed as "Critically Endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in their Red Data Book (IUCN, 1991) and is also listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES, 1979). It is finally listed as endangered in the USA Endangered Species Act of 1979.
Natural History Facts
The vaquita, one of the world’s rarest and most endangered cetaceans has been known to science since 1958, year that was described by Norris and McFarland. Its complete external morphology was published by Brownell et al., in 1987 using the first 8 fresh specimens collected in 1985 in totoaba gill nets in El Golfo de Santa Clara (a small fishery town in the northwest side of the state of Sonora). The vaquita is the sole member of the Phocoenidae family ("true porpoises") found in the Gulf of California and the only cetacean endemic of Mexico. The vaquita has the most limited distribution of any marine cetacean in the world; it can only be found in the northern most part of the Upper Gulf of California, with the highest densities offshore of Puertecitos, San Felipe and Rocas Consag. It thrives in the shallow waters of the upper Gulf of California between 13 and 50 m. The Vaquita is extremely difficult to observe at sea, due to behavior, habitat, and the way it reaches the surface after diving.Vaquitas have a dark patch around the eye, and dark coloring around the mouth, from where a dark stripe extends to the flipper. The dorsal fin is triangular and has a combination of bumps and whitish spots on its leading edge. The body color is grey, dark above but lighter on the sides, with a pale grey/white belly. The adults specimens of vaquita measure 1.2-1.5m in length, and are thought to weigh a maximum of 55 kg. The oldest individual, a female, was estimated to be 21 years old. Vaquitas are seasonal reproducers, with most births occurring around March every other year.
The locations of 102 well-documented sightings appeared to be correlated with bottom sediment type, with vaquita sightings being most common over silt and clay sediments (and less common over sand). It was noted that sediment type is related to the strength of currents and to benthic fish fauna, either, of which could be the proximate reason for this correlation. Vaquita were typically found in depths between 20 and 50 m. Sightings occurred in the same general region (near Rocas Consag) in the spring, summer, and fall, but a few sightings appeared to be concentrated further north in the winter.
Vaquita Population
The most recent survey was completed in 1998 by the National Institute of Fisheries (INP) and the NMFS/SWFSC (USA). The survey took place in August and September 1997. The known and potential area of distribution was covered using three vessels. Line transects were used to estimate the average density. All vaquita sightings were limited to the western part of the Upper Gulf. The total abundance of the species estimated on different sight locations was of 567 CI 95%, 177- 1073 animals. Approximately 40% of sightings occurred south of the Upper Gulf of California Biosphere Reserve and approximately 60% were inside the Reserve but only one unconfirmed sighting was registered within the core zone of the Reserve.
©2006 IISFAC http://www.sanfelipe.com.mx