(KGTV) — A couple of hours south of the border, beneath the surface of the Sea of Cortez is a war for a fish referred to as the “cocaine of the sea.”
It’s so valuable, trafficking of the fish is controlled by organized crime. In 2017, ABC 10News’ Kimberly Hunt reported how cartels were poaching this illegal fish called the Totoaba, and in the process, wiping out other sea life, and bringing the world’s smallest whale, the Vaquita, to the brink of extinction.
The Totoaba’s sea-bladder is cut out of the fish and smuggled to China where it is considered a delicacy with medicinal qualities.
Poachers in Mexico get about 4-5 thousand dollars for each Totoaba, and in China, we are told by conservationists that the bladders go for 40-70 thousand dollars apiece.
Fishermen in the Sea of Cortez illegally fish for Totoaba by throwing out huge fishnets. When the nets are brought up, other sea life is caught and dies as by-catch. Among them is the critically endangered Vaquita porpoise.
Despite efforts for years by U.S. NGOs, the U.S government, and the Mexican government, the traffickers continue to fish, traffic into China, and make millions of dollars a year.
Today there are fewer than 10 Vaquita left on earth. And, just last week the vote of an international committee dealt a major blow to the imperiled Vaquita.
Last week, an international committee gave the green light for commercial farming and trade in captive-bred Totoaba, and in doing so, may have condemned the last few…
