Vaquita porpoise faces extinction, warns whaling group -
With a maximum length of 5 feet, the vaquita porpoise is the smallest species within the animal order Cetacea, which contains whale, dolphin and porpoise species.
Fishermen in the vaquita porpoise’s habitat still illegally use gillnets, walls of netting hung vertically in the water column, in order to catch shrimp and totoaba fish. The cetaceans get caught in the nets as bycatch. In 1997, researchers estimated that 567 vaquita porpoises existed in the wild, per the IWC. By 2018, that number had plummeted to an estimated nine.
The IWC said the species was not irretrievably doomed — so long as gillnet bans were properly enforced. “The extinction of the vaquita is inevitable unless 100% of gillnets are substituted immediately with alternative fishing gears that protect the vaquita and the livelihoods of fishers. If this doesn’t happen now, it will be too late,” IWC scientists wrote at the conclusion of their alert.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Extinction alert issued for critically endangered marine mammal | CNNThe International Whaling Commission released its first-ever extinction alert Monday to warn of the potential danger facing the critically endangered vaquita porpoise
Read more »
Extinction Alert Issued for Mexico's Threatened Vaquita PorpoiseThe International Whaling Commission (IWC) has issued an extinction alert for the critically endangered vaquita porpoise, whose population has dwindled to less than a dozen. This marks the first-ever extinction warning from the institution. The vaquita, the world's smallest porpoise found in Mexico's Gulf of California, is threatened by illegal gill net fishing for the totoaba fish, which is highly sought after in Asia. Mexico's government is facing pressure to take action against this practice.
Read more »
Armenians face genocide in Azerbaijan, former International Criminal Court prosecutor warnsThe former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court warned that Azerbaijan is preparing genocide against ethnic Armenians in its Nagorno-Karabakh region and called for the U.N. Security Council to bring the matter before the international tribunal. A report by Luis Moreno Ocampo issued Tuesday said Azerbaijan's blockade of the only road leading from Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh seriously impedes food, medical supplies and other essentials to the region of about 120,000 people.
Read more »
Oscars: Switzerland Picks Period Drama ‘Thunder’ as International Feature SubmissionCarmen Jaquier's debut, a coming-of-age period drama set in a small Swiss village in 1900, premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year.
Read more »
Israeli minister pushes back against US, international criticism over judicial overhaulRon Dermer, Israel's strategic affairs minister, takes issue with criticism of the country's judicial reforms. As protests continue, minister gives Netanyahu government's take on the overhaul.
Read more »