Welcome to Brainstuff, a production of I Heart Radio, Hey brain Stuff. Lauren bogabam here. Jacques Cousteau, renowned sea explorer and scuba pioneer, spent decades exploring oceans and rivers all across the globe, but few places could match the rich biodiversity of the Gulf of California, a narrow seven hundred mile long sea that's about eleven kilometers that separates the
Baja California Peninsula from mainland Mexico. Custo affectionately called it the World's aquarium due to its remarkable array of marine species. But today the underwater masterpieces in critical danger of losing one of its unique denizens forever, and scientists can't emphasize enough just how truly dire the situation has become for
one of the world's most adorable mammals. The total number of Bikita, a small porpoise endemic to the Gulf of California, has windled down to just around ten as of this recording, making the Wikita the world's most endangered marine mammal. While not all hope is lost for their survival, it hinges on immediate action for the Mexican government and local fishers. The Wikita is the world's smallest cetacean, which is the order of aquatic mammals that includes whales, purpoises, and dolphins.
They only grow up to five feet that's one and a half meters in length, and weigh in at no more than twenty pounds or about fifty five kilos. Their faces look like an adorable porpoise emoji, with black rings around their eyes and lips that give the impression of a perpetual grin. Vikita means little cow in Spanish. The locals likely chose the name because the porpoises facial markings have a bovine resemblance. The scientists are unsure of whether
the markings serve a purpose. Vikitas have a rounded head and spade shaped teeth and no beak. Despite their small stature, their triangular dorsal fin is larger than that of many other porpoises, most likely to help them lower their body
temperature in their warm water habitat. If you've never heard of the wikida, it's quite possibly due to the fact that they were only first identified and studied in the mid twentieth century and seemed to be quite shy even though they inhabit waters relatively close to shore and don't often swim deeper than nine ft or thirty meters, they've only come to the surface every few minutes for three seconds at a time, and tend to stay in small
groups away from motorized boats. Many endangered species are dying off due to some combination of habitat loss, pollution, or disease, but the Wikidas demise stems from something much more simple that could be much more easily remedied. For the article, this episode is based on How Stuff Works. Spoke by email with Sarah Yuhleman, the International Program Director and Senior
attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. She said the key faces a single threat entanglement in fishing gear set to catch shrimp and a giant fish called the totohaba. Historically, most of the shrimp cought in the wikita's habitat was shipped to the US market. The totoabas swim bladder is consumed mostly in China, where it's believed to have medicinal properties.
The Wikita's population has declined by in the last thirty years, entirely because of entanglement and deadly fishing nets, So why don't fishers and local governments step up and stop the detrimental fishing in the area. It all comes down to money. Totaaba's fish bladder, depending on its weight and other factors, is reported to bring in anywhere from two thousand dollars to more than thirty thousand, creating a lucrative and thriving black market. So does the Wikita have a chance of survival?
Many endangered species struggle with the genetic effects of inbreeding once their population reaches such a small size, but there is some good news for the Kita. How Stuff Works also spoke by email with Barbara Taylor, the lead Wikita researcher at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAH. As she said, even though there are only around ten remaining, we have evidence that they're not threatened by genetic factors.
These survivors and their calves need protection from gill nets by guarding the small area where they remain and ensuring there's no gillnet fishing of any kind there. Yulman said, we're at the end of the line for the Wikita. For decades, the Mexican public, scientists and conservationists have pleaded with the Mexican government to finally protect the Wikita. Mexico
has the right laws in place. It is illegal to fish with deadly gillnets in the vikita's habitat, but the Mexican government lacks the will to enforce its own law, and just last week dozens of boats were documented fishing illegally within the vikita's habitat. Mexico must crack down and end illegal fishing now or will lose the Wikita forever. There's an additional factor that makes enforcing the law the
only viable option for the Wikidas survival. Captive breeding has proven too difficult and too risky with the Wikida, Taylor explained, the two wakedas captured responded poorly to handling, with one released with signs of stress and the second that died.
Capture myopathy, in which muscle damage results from extreme exertion, struggle, or stress, is common in mammals, but with only ten individuals remaining, veterinarians didn't feel they could afford to learn how to stop the cascade of stress resulting in death, and such learning needs to happen when there are hundreds or thousands of individuals, not tens. The wikida is a true treasure of the sea that, while in great danger,
can be saved with swift action. It's common to feel powerless to affect change, but you can help save the wikita through your support of various organizations that are leading urgent conservation efforts, including the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, and the World Wildlife Fund. The Porpoise Conservation Society even offers a way to feel that direct connection. You can symbolically adopt a vikita and help give them a chance to swim the seeds for years to come.
Today's episode is based on the article with fewer than ten left, can the Wakita b Say? On house to works dot com, written by Katie Carmen. Green Stuff is production of I Heart Radio in partnership with hows toff works dot Com, and it is produced by Tyler Clang. Four more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.