In the northern reaches of the Sea of Cortez, the vaquita marina finds its only home on earth. The vaquita is the world's smallest porpoise; its sleek, pearl-gray body grows to just under five feet long. Vaquita slip through the shallow, murky waters along the shore and the nutrient-filled lagoons of the Colorado River delta. These rich waters also draw humpback whales, hammerhead sharks and several types of sea turtles. All of these species were once so abundant here that Jacques Cousteau named the Gulf of California the "aquarium of the world." Now many gulf species are in decline, but none more so than the vaquita. No more than 500 remain.

Local fishermen's gillnets continue to ensnare this small porpoise along with their intended catch, driving the vaquita marina toward the brink of extinction. Making matters even worse for this imperiled species, a fleet of about 200 boats harvest shrimp in the Upper Gulf by scraping the sea floor with massive, weighted nets, a practice called bottom trawling that wreaks havoc on the vaquitas' only habitat.

NRDC has joined the fight that concerned Mexicans have carried on for years to end destructive fishing practices in the Upper Gulf, and BioGems Defenders have helped fuel a major breakthrough. In early 2005, BioGems Defenders sent more than 35,000 messages to Mexico's chief shrimp exporter, California-based Ocean Garden, urging the company to help protect the vaquita by promoting sustainable fishing in the Upper Gulf. Soon after, Ocean Garden met with NRDC staff and local fishermen and agreed to take steps to prevent the accidental catch of vaquitas and more than 400 other species in fishing nets and to eliminate illegal fishing in the Upper Gulf.

Ocean Garden was recently sold to new owners, however, and we must now ensure that they live up to the company's commitment to help protect the vaquita's home.

Photo credits: Cactus on shore, © Tom Bean. Vaquitas, © WWF/Gustavo Ybarra.