Bycatch, the process whereby marine species are caught incidentally, is one of the primary direct threats to whales, dolphins and porpoises worldwide. Hundreds of thousands of cetaceans are bycaught annually, making this the most prevalent threat to cetacean welfare and conservation.
The critically endangered vaquita will be extinct within a few years unless bycatch in gillnets is completely eliminated from its habitat in the Upper Gulf of California, Mexico.
In addition our ongoing investigations of the impact of illegal gillnet fishing of totoaba and associated vaquita bycatch, EIA draw attention to and advocate for other endangered cetacean populations threatened with and declining due to bycatch globally, such as Atlantic humpback dolphin, franciscana and Iberian porpoise.
We work with the Consortium for Conservation of Atlantic Humpback Dolphins (CCAHD) to understand and prevent bycatch of Atlantic humpback dolphins. We also support efforts to prevent bycatch of franciscana dolphins off Brazil, where mitigation trials are taking place on static gillnets.
