illegal fishing

Just ‘Days’ Left to Save 6 to 19 Remaining Vaquitas

Just ‘Days’ Left to Save 6 to 19 Remaining Vaquitas

There are only between six and 19 vaquitas left, a new study has concluded, and, unless swift action is taken, the endangered species could go extinct within a year. The world’s smallest porpoises, found only in Mexico’s Gulf of California, are threatened because they are caught by mistake in illegal gillnets. The study, published in […]

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    Just ‘Days’ Left to Save 6 to 19 Remaining Vaquitas

    Just ‘Days’ Left to Save 6 to 19 Remaining Vaquitas

    There are only between six and 19 vaquitas left, a new study has concluded, and, unless swift action is taken, the endangered species could go extinct within a year. The world’s smallest porpoises, found only in Mexico’s Gulf of California, are threatened because they are caught by mistake in illegal gillnets. The study, published in […]

    Loved to Death: How Pirate Fishing Decimates Chile’s Favorite Fish

    Loved to Death: How Pirate Fishing Decimates Chile’s Favorite Fish

    By Allison Guy When Hugo Arancibia Farías was a child, his mother, like most mothers in central Chile, visited the weekly market to buy common hake, a white-fleshed relative of cod. She usually served it fried, Arancibia recalled with relish. “It was very cheap,” he said, “and very popular.” Nowadays, hake is more expensive than […]

    New Agreement Offers Brighter Future for Pacific Bluefin Tuna

    New Agreement Offers Brighter Future for Pacific Bluefin Tuna

    By Amanda Nickson The Pacific bluefin tuna is among the most depleted species on the planet, having been fished down more than 97 percent from its historic, unfished size. For years, this prized fish has been in dire need of strong policies that would reverse that decline, but the two organizations responsible for its management—the […]

    Only 30 Left in the Wild: Saving the Nearly Extinct Vaquita

    Only 30 Left in the Wild: Saving the Nearly Extinct Vaquita

    In one of the longest campaigns in Sea Shepherd‘s history, Operation Milagro III concluded its six-month operation in Mexico’s Gulf of California to protect the near-extinct vaquita porpoise and the endangered totoaba bass. Two Sea Shepherd vessels, the M/V Farley Mowat, along with the M/Y Sam Simon, spent the last six months patrolling the vaquita […]

    Japan Joins Agreement to Fight Illegal Fishing

    Japan Joins Agreement to Fight Illegal Fishing

    By Tony Long Japan, one of the world’s largest fish importers, has joined 47 other governments in ratifying the Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA)—an international treaty designed to stop illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Adopted by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization in 2009, the PSMA helps governments strengthen their port controls to better […]