Authorities seize 9 kilometers of illegal totoaba fishing nets in the Gulf of California

Over the weekend, Mexican authorities operating successful the bluish Gulf of California dismantled much than 9,000 meters of mesh nets which had trapped 3,500 kilograms of endangered totoaba fish.

The Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa), the Navy and the National Fisheries and Fishing Commission (Conapesca) found the amerciable nets aboriginal Sunday morning adjacent the municipality of San Felipe, Baja California.

🟩 Retiran más de 9 km de redes ilegales de enmalle de totoaba en el Alto Golfo de California

Se inutilizan 72 ejemplares muertos de totoaba y se libera a siete ejemplares vivos. Este resultado se da en el marco del reforzamiento de las acciones de vigilancia que ha impulsado… pic.twitter.com/GB1DcM12Ia

— PROFEPA (@PROFEPA_Mx) March 18, 2025

In a property release, the authorities reported that 79 totoaba food were recovered trapped successful the netting, lone 7 of which were inactive alive. The authorities released the 7 backmost into the water.

Fishing for totoaba — a taxon of marine food endemic to the Gulf of California successful Mexico — is illegal. Once abundant successful the area, the totoaba — which tin scope a size of 2 meters (6.6 ft) and measurement up to 135 kilograms (300 pounds) — is present considered endangered owed to human-related threats, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The superior crushed for the caller overfishing of the totoaba is the request for the fish’s aquatics bladder, an organ that helps the food power its buoyancy. 

In summation to being considered a delicacy successful Asia, accepted Chinese medicine holds that these aquatics bladders, known arsenic “fish maws,” are believed to person galore wellness benefits, including promoting longevity and vitality. 

The summation successful request implicit the past 20 years has caused the terms of totoaba aquatics bladders to skyrocket connected the achromatic marketplace — up to US $8,000 per kg, according to the paper Milenio — earning it the nickname “cocaine of the sea.”

During the play operation, Profepa destroyed much than 23 kg (50 pounds) of aquatics bladder.

Illegal sportfishing for totoaba puts the near-extinct vaquita porpoise astatine adjacent greater hazard since they tin easy get stuck successful sportfishing nets. (Dolphin Discovery)

The indiscriminate sportfishing methods person besides proven deadly for the elusive vaquita, a taxon of porpoise recovered lone successful the bluish Gulf of California that is connected the brink of extinction. The astir caller vaquita census recovered lone six to 8 specimens in Mexican waters.

In 2023, the Mexican authorities initiated a bid of actions to halt amerciable sportfishing activities and support its past remaining vaquitas. 

According to a December 2024 report, Conapesca has established much than 730 random checkpoints, with inspections carried retired astatine warehouses, postulation centres, freezers, food markets and restaurants. The cognition includes the inspection of much than 5,190 tiny vessels upon departure and arrival.

Prior to the caller cognition successful San Felipe, the bureau had destroyed much than 130 sportfishing rigs, including 38,000 meters of prohibited nets and 30 traps and/or cages.

With reports from Milenio, N+ and Oceanographic