Little Progress in Effort to Save Vaquita
2022-04-12
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1The vaquita is one of the smallest members of the dolphin and whale family.
2Today, the animal is in danger of disappearing.
3The World Wildlife Fund estimates that about 10 vaquitas are left in the world.
4Last September, scientists found two baby vaquitas in the wild.
5 The discovery was a sign of hope.
6But biologists fear that more vaquitas die each year than are born.
7A vaquita is about 1.5 meter long.
8Its name means "little cow" in Spanish.
9The mammals only live in the northern part of the Gulf of California in Mexico.
10They are most often found close to the coast and quickly swim away if a boat nears them.
11The creatures were first discovered by humans in 1958.
12They can live for at least 21 years.
13Females are believed to give birth every other year to a single offspring between February and April.
14The vaquita population was estimated to be around 600 in 1997.
15The organization Save the Vaquita said the population decreased 90 percent between 2011 and 2016.
16Vaquitas are often caught in fixed fishing nets used to catch fish such as totoaba.
17Fishermen catch the endangered totoaba illegally for its swim bladder, which they then sell to China at high prices.
18In China, the swim bladders are used in cooking and are believed to have medicinal value.
19In 2017, the Mexican government banned the use of such nets in the area to help save the vaquita.
20In January, the Mexican Navy and the environmental group Sea Shepherd began a campaign to protect the rare animal's habitat in the Gulf of California.
21To prevent illegal fishing, local fishermen must pass a government inspection.
22But the Reuters news agency recently reported that it observed fishermen entering the sea in places where they could avoid inspection.
23Zak Smith is a director with the Natural Resources Defense Council.
24He said there was always a "good story" to be told about what was being done for the vaquita.
25But he said, " As as soon as the cameras go away or the interest of the parties fades, all of those efforts go back to where they were."
26I'm Ashley Thompson.
1The vaquita is one of the smallest members of the dolphin and whale family. Today, the animal is in danger of disappearing. 2The World Wildlife Fund estimates that about 10 vaquitas are left in the world. Last September, scientists found two baby vaquitas in the wild. The discovery was a sign of hope. But biologists fear that more vaquitas die each year than are born. 3A vaquita is about 1.5 meter long. Its name means "little cow" in Spanish. The mammals only live in the northern part of the Gulf of California in Mexico. They are most often found close to the coast and quickly swim away if a boat nears them. 4The creatures were first discovered by humans in 1958. They can live for at least 21 years. Females are believed to give birth every other year to a single offspring between February and April. 5The vaquita population was estimated to be around 600 in 1997. The organization Save the Vaquita said the population decreased 90 percent between 2011 and 2016. 6Vaquitas are often caught in fixed fishing nets used to catch fish such as totoaba. Fishermen catch the endangered totoaba illegally for its swim bladder, which they then sell to China at high prices. In China, the swim bladders are used in cooking and are believed to have medicinal value. 7In 2017, the Mexican government banned the use of such nets in the area to help save the vaquita. In January, the Mexican Navy and the environmental group Sea Shepherd began a campaign to protect the rare animal's habitat in the Gulf of California. 8To prevent illegal fishing, local fishermen must pass a government inspection. But the Reuters news agency recently reported that it observed fishermen entering the sea in places where they could avoid inspection. 9Zak Smith is a director with the Natural Resources Defense Council. He said there was always a "good story" to be told about what was being done for the vaquita. 10But he said, " As as soon as the cameras go away or the interest of the parties fades, all of those efforts go back to where they were." 11I'm Ashley Thompson. 12Hai Do wrote this story for Learning English with additional reporting from Reuters. 13____________________________________________________________________ 14Words in This Story 15mammal - n. warm-blooded animal with a backbone 16bladder - n. a small sac that holds air for fish 17habitat - n. a place where animal normally lives 18fade - v. lose strength