How many totoaba are left 2021?
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.
What type of fish is totoaba?
The totoaba or totuava (Totoaba macdonaldi) is a species of marine fish, a very large member of the drum family Sciaenidae that is endemic to the Gulf of California in Mexico. It is the only species in the genus Totoaba.
What is totoaba bladder used for?
Swim bladders enable totoaba to maintain their buoyancy in the water. They are used in traditional medicines in China and can fetch up to £15,000 on the black market. Many people believe it can cure ailments such as arthritis.
Is totoaba illegal?
Fishing for totoaba was banned in Mexico in 1975, but due to its high value, illegal fishing has become rampant. Because of the totoaba’s large size, nets designed to catch the fish have a mesh size that is also perfect to catch vaquita. And once caught, they drown within minutes as by-catch.
Is totoaba good to eat?
The meat is highly prized due to its unique texture and flavor. During the festivals of Seri indigenous peoples, totoaba is caught, set aside on a bed of sticks, then slowly roasted over an open fire, while the juices are poured into it.
Is totoaba fish good to eat?
Can you eat totoaba?
It is listed on Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and the Endangered Species Act. It must not be caught or eaten.
How much is totoaba bladder worth?
They were packed with 132 dried totoaba swim bladders, which can fetch anywhere from $20,000 to $80,000 per kilogram and has come to be known as “aquatic cocaine.” The swim bladders being transported by Liang and Huang weighed a little over 100 pounds, meaning they could have been sold for somewhere between $940,000 …
Why is totoaba bladder so expensive?
The swim bladder of the totoaba is particularly prized due to its large size and thickness, as well as its perceived health benefits. It is not the first victim of the Chinese taste for maw. The Chinese bahaba, native to the waters off south-eastern China, has a swim bladder with similar properties.
How many totoaba left 2022?
The illegal gillnets used to catch the totoaba and other species, including shrimp, entangle and kill the vaquita porpoise, another CITES Appendix I-listed species. There are only an estimated eight vaquita remaining on the planet.
Why is totoaba endangered?
Illegal fishing and China’s demand for maws have pushed one of Mexico’s signature fishes – and with it the vaquita porpoise – to the brink of extinction. The totoaba, endemic to Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, is listed as a critically endangered species.
Is totoaba illegal in China?
Trade in the maw of most species is not banned – selling the totoaba swim bladder, however, has been illegal since 1976, when the fish was added to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Are vaquitas Still Alive 2021?
The vaquita is the most endangered cetacean in the world. With as few as around 10 left, the species will become extinct without a fully enforced gillnet ban throughout their entire habitat. WWF is urgently working to ensure they can live and thrive in their natural habitat.
Who was on Earth first?
The earliest life forms we know of were microscopic organisms (microbes) that left signals of their presence in rocks about 3.7 billion years old.