Environmentalists sue Interior Department in push to save critically endangered porpoise
The vaquita is on the brink of extinction as a consequence of Mexican fishermen ensnaring them while illegally catching fish whose bladders are an expensive delicacy in China.
CAMERON LANGFORD / December 14, 2022
A pair of critically endangered vaquita porpoises swim in the Gulf of California in 2018. (Oscar Ortiz/Museo de la Ballena y Ciencias del Mar via AP)
(CN) — Environmental groups sued the Interior Department on Wednesday seeking sanctions against Mexico for failing to crack down on illegal fishing imperiling vaquita porpoises, whose population in the Gulf of California has declined from around 600 in the late 1990s to just 10.
The world’s most critically endangered marine mammal and smallest porpoise, reaching lengths of about 5 feet, vaquita are endemic to Mexico’s Gulf of California, also called the Sea of Cortez, and named after the Spanish word for little cow.
Their status is a consequence of a large fish that shares their habitat, the totoaba.
Part of the drum family, the totoaba's swim bladders are considered a delicacy in China with medicinal properties that can increase fertility and circulation and treat skin problems. They fetch eye-popping prices of up to $100,000 per kilogram.
Though Mexico made it illegal to catch totoaba in 1975 by placing the fish on its endangered species list, the practice continues and has picked up over the last decade with demand from China.
More:
https://www.courthousenews.com/environmentalists-sue-interior-department-in-push-to-save-critically-endangered-porpoise/
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11 Fascinating Pangolin Facts
Despite their protected status in most countries where they occur, pangolins are still wrongfully traded for their scales and meat, like many other endangered and vulnerable species, for medicinal use. While they have no medicinal benefit, it is believed that over one million pangolins have been taken from their wild habitats in the last decade. With a growing awareness around these special creatures and a growing desire of photographic safari-goers to see them in the wild, we are seeing more reports of sightings these days. Here are 11 fascinating facts about everyone's favorite little armored creature, the elusive pangolin:
1. Pangolin babies ride on their mother’s back by hanging onto her scales. They are born live after a gestation period of 3-4 months.
2. They are not related to anteaters, sloths or armadillos, in fact they are more closely related to carnivores.
3. Pangolins are the only mammal with scales, making up about 20% of their bodyweight. The scales are made up of keratin – the same as human hair and nails, lion claws and rhino horn.
More:
https://isafari.nathab.com/11-fascinating-pangolin-facts
