The population was estimated at 600 in 1997, below 100 in 2014, approximately 60 in 2015, around 30 in November 2016, and only 12-15 in March 2018, leading to the conclusion that the species will soon be extinct unless drastic action is taken.

An estimate released in March 2019 is that a maximum of 22 and a minimum of 6 vaquita porpoises remain.

Vaquitas live only in the upper parts of Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, also known as the Gulf of California, and they’re the world’s smallest member of the order of animals called cetaceans that includes whales, dolphins and other porpoises.

Vaquitas have never been hunted directly, but their population is declining, largely because of animals becoming trapped in illegal gill-nets intended for capturing the totoaba, a large critically endangered fish of the drum family endemic to the Gulf. The totoaba is being sought after for its swim bladder, which is considered a delicacy in China where a single swim bladder can command a price of $46,000 per kg (2019) on the Chinese black market.

In 2016, the Mexican government outlawed the use of gill-nets for most fisheries in the upper Gulf of California. However, as of March 2019, the law has not been enforced in the waters yet. “Unless Mexico gets serious about enforcement and works with China and key transit countries to dismantle those networks, there is no hope for the remaining vaquita”, said Clare Perry, ocean campaign leader for the Environmental Investigation Agency.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org