World's most endangered marine mammal could go extinct [View all]

[SunSeeker]

The world's smallest porpoise is fighting for its life. Conservationists claim the numbers of critically endangered vaquita has dropped to only 50 - half what it was estimated to be just a few months ago. It is the most endangered of any of the 128 marine mammal species alive today.

The animal is found exclusively in the upper part Mexico's Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortez. But it's not fishing for the vaquita that is the problem. Rather, the commission concluded illegal fishingand trading of another critically endangered species called totoaba caught using huge gill nets was the driver, resulting in "a high entanglement risk for vaquitas."
...
Uhlemann said that the totoaba's swim bladder is illegally exported to Asia to make soup and traditional medicine. Demand for totoaba bladders has spiked recently, and a single totoaba bladder can sell for $14,000.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/worlds-most-endangered-marine-mammal-could-go-extinct/