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Rare Porpoise Captured on Film in the Wild

Nature Conservancy pledges funds to protect vaquita porpoise from fishers’ nets

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA — October Thirty One, 2008 —  The Nature Conservancy paused in its effort to protect the endangered vaquita porpoise from extinction today to celebrate the first clear photos and video taken of the small porpoise swimming freely in its habitat.

“This is a historic accomplishment — the vaquita was the Holy Grail for marine photographers,” said Rosario Alvarez, director of The Nature Conservancy’s Mexico program. “Up until now we have mostly had photos of vaquitas tangled in nets.” Vaquitas, the smallest of all dolphins, whales and porpoises, are found only in the northern Gulf of California and in dwindling numbers.

Filmmaker Christopher Johnson, who took the images, wrote on his blog from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expedition currently under way to document the vaquita’s existence, that he never dreamed of being in a position to even see the vaquita, let alone film it in the wild.

“It has been tried unsuccessfully over many years, and is akin to climbing Mount Everest with no oxygen and your legs tied together,” Johnson wrote.

The Nature Conservancy together with Conservation International and the World Wildlife Fund have pledged $5 million toward the Mexican government’s effort to pay fishers in the Gulf of California to stop fishing with gillnets and in some cases stop fishing altogether. The government has spent about $20 million this year to buy out approximately 800 fishers and the Conservancy is partnering to help with next year’s effort. 

Approximately 30 vaquitas are killed in fish and shrimp nets each year from a base of only 150 estimated to exist last year. Scientists are worried the vaquita could be extinct in two years without strong conservation efforts.

Johnson is filming The Search for the Desert Porpoise, following the collaborative efforts of scientists, government officials, conservationist and local fishermen to implement the plan to save the vaquita, the most endangered and the smallest of all cetaceans (whale, dolphin or porpoise.). Johnson’s blog, photos and video can be found on http://www.whaletrackers.com.

The historic image of the Vaquita.
Photo © Christopher Johnson

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.