The Vaquita is the world’s smallest porpoise. They live only in the northern reaches of the Gulf of California, Mexico.

Scientists estimate that 150 animals remain. This shy, elusive porpoise is disappearing due to accidental entanglement in fishing nets set for shrimp. Following the loss of the Baiji (Yangtze River Dolphin) in 2006, the Vaquita is the next marine mammal in line for extinction.

In October 2008, I traveled to San Felipe, Mexico to follow an international scientific expedition to document and monitor the last remaining Vaquita.

This expedition marks the beginning of an all out, last-ditch effort to save the little known Vaquita. With so few animals remaining, time is critical.

The Mexican government has a two year plan to remove gillnets from the water to save the Vaquita. What does that mean for families in an area of limited economic opportunity where fishing is the only source of income?

Expedition Vaquita – The Search for the Desert Porpoise, is an online multimedia project featuring a series of blogs from the field and documentary shorts called ‘Rough Cuts’. These shorts were produced throughout the expedition and take the viewer on a journey. They explore multiple perspectives from a range of users and interest groups while communicating the challenges the species face, and the solutions being implemented to help ensure their survival.

In 2009, we will produce a documentary in both English and Spanish about our search for the desert porpoise.

Photos and video taken under permit (Oficio No. DR/847/08 &amp No. DR/488/08 ) from the Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP/Secretaría del Medio Ambiente y
Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT), within a natural protected area subject to special management and decreed as such by the Mexican Government. This work was made possible thanks to the collaboration and support of the Coordinator of Marine Mammal Research and Conservation at the Instiuto Nacional de Ecología (INE) in Mexico.

The Expedition Vaquita multimedia project was funded by a grant from The Ocean Foundation.