Another cetacean disappearing
One of the subjects of this weblog is crime, and I consider allowing a species to become extinct as one of the worst crimes imaginable. Particularly when you are dealing with some of God's most magnificant creatures, such as cetaceans (dolphins, whales & porpoises). I'm not a bleeding heart who is against hunting animals. But I am firmly against wiping out an entire species, which can never be reversed once it occurs.
A little while back, I wrote about the extermination of the Baiji, the Chinese River dolphin. Now there is another species on the brink of extinction, the "Vaquita" (Phocoena sinus), a small porpoise that lives solely in Mexico, in the Sea of Cortez. The animal may already be functionally extinct, since the current estimate puts its population at only about 150 members. Not surprisingly, they are primarily disappearing due to being caught in fishing nets.
According to Animalinfo.org, it once prospered in a much larger range, but the rise of commercial fisheries has sharply curtailed it's habitat.
The government of Mexico has declared support for saving the porpoise, but unfortunately, Mexico can do little to control its ever-growing population, and the future for this animal is extremly bleak. Warnings were given several years ago, but the animal's number continues to decline.
There is a website, Vaquita.org, devoted solely to saving the creature.
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1 comments:
This is inexcusable and I agree with you on every level. These animals going extinct is not a partisan issue, it is an ethics issue.
Our children and grandchildren will inherit a very dismal world if we are not careful.
You have done your blogger duty bringing it to my attention.
Manwhore
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