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What the sources say

VaquitaPhocoena sinus

Every figure, record and mechanism on the Vaquita profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 41 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

NOAA Fisheries

Vaquita. NOAA Fisheries.

The page saysA shy porpoise
The source saysThe vaquita is a shy member of the porpoise family
The page sayswith the smallest range of any whale, dolphin or porpoise
The source saysVaquitas have the smallest range of any whale, dolphin, or porpoise.
The page saysThe northern Gulf of California, Mexico, mostly east of San Felipe
The source saysIt only lives in the northern part of the Gulf of California in Mexico. Most vaquitas live east of the town of San Felipe, Baja California
The page saysSmall fish, crustaceans and cephalopods
The source saysVaquitas feed on small fish, crustaceans (such as shrimp), and cephalopods (such as squid and octopuses).
The page sayslives in one small corner of the ocean
The source saysThe vaquita has the smallest geographical range of any marine mammal.
The page saysNOAA says it has the smallest range of any whale, dolphin or porpoise: only the northern part of the Gulf of California in Mexico
The source saysVaquitas have the smallest range of any whale, dolphin, or porpoise. They only live in the northern part of the Gulf of California.
The page saysMost vaquitas live east of the town of San Felipe, in a 1,519-square-mile area
The source saysMost vaquitas live east of the town of San Felipe, Baja California, within a 1,519-square-mile area
The page saysAn adult weighs 65 to 120 pounds
The source saysWeight 65 to 120 pounds
The page saysis 4 to 5 feet long
The source saysLength 4 to 5 feet
The page saysone of the smallest members of the dolphin, whale and porpoise family
The source saysis one of the smallest members of the dolphin, whale, and porpoise family
The page saysblack patches around its eyes and lips, a rounded head with no beak, and small spade-shaped teeth
The source saysVaquitas have small, strong bodies with a rounded head and no beak. They have black patches around their eyes and lips and small, spade-shaped teeth.
The page saysIts triangular dorsal fin is taller and wider than other porpoises have, and NOAA says that fin might help it lose heat in warm water
The source saysVaquitas also have triangle-shaped dorsal fins in the middle of their backs, which are taller and wider than in other porpoises. These fins might allow vaquitas to reduce their body temperatures in warm water.
The page saysVaquitas are often alone or in pairs and usually avoid boats with active engines
The source saysVaquitas are often found alone or in pairs. These shy animals usually avoid boats with active engines.
The page saysTheir small size and slow, inconspicuous surface rolls make them hard to observe
The source saysThey are difficult to observe because of their small size, inconspicuous and slow surface rolls, small group size, and avoidance of motorized vessels.
The page saysThey eat small fish, crustaceans such as shrimp, and cephalopods such as squid and octopuses
The source saysVaquitas feed on small fish, crustaceans (such as shrimp), and cephalopods (such as squid and octopuses).
The page saysA vaquita can live for at least 21 years
The source saysVaquitas can live for at least 21 years.
The page saysthe sound pulses they use to find their food
The source saysthe echolocation clicks that vaquitas use to find their food
The page saysVaquitas can drown when they become entangled in gillnets
The source saysvaquitas can also become accidentally wrapped in the nets and drown
The page saysFrom 1997 to 2008, legal fishing, largely for shrimp, cut their numbers from around 600 to about 200
The source saysFrom 1997, the year of the first complete survey, to 2008, vaquitas declined from around 600 to about 200 individuals as a result of legal fishing. The fishing was largely for shrimp
The page saysfrom around 2011, illegal fishing for totoaba, a large fish prized for its swim bladder, drove a decline of close to 50 percent of the population per year
The source saysThe increased incidence of illegal fishing for a large fish called totoaba around 2011 caused a catastrophic decline of vaquita close to 50 percent of the population per year.
The page saysa large fish prized for its swim bladder
The source saysFishermen illegally catch totoaba for its swim bladder
The page saysMexico announced a two-year emergency gillnet ban in 2015
The source saysIn April 2015, President Peña Nieto traveled to San Felipe, one of the main fishing towns off the Gulf of California, to announce a 2-year emergency gillnet ban throughout vaquita habitat.
The page saysin July 2017 a federal agreement permanently banned all gillnets except those for two fish species, but NOAA notes the illegal use continues
The source saysIn July 2017, a federal agreement permanently banned all gillnets except those used for fishing two species: curvina and sierra. But the illegal use of gillnets continues.
The page saysA vaquita that gets wrapped in a gillnet can drown
The source saysvaquitas can also become accidentally wrapped in the nets and drown
The page saysNOAA says the nets set illegally for totoaba, a big fish whose swim bladder sells for high prices, are the deadliest for them.
The source saysBecause totoaba and vaquita are similar in size, gillnets illegally set for totoaba are the deadliest for vaquitas.
The page sayswhose swim bladder sells for high prices
The source saysFishermen illegally catch totoaba for its swim bladder (an air-filled sac in the totoaba’s body that helps it float), which they sell to China at high prices.
The page saysA newborn is about 2.5 feet long and weighs about 16 pounds.
The source saysa single calf that is about 2.5 feet long and 16 pounds
The page saysNOAA says females are thought to have a single calf every other year, after a pregnancy of about 10 to 11 months.
The source saysPregnancy lasts about 10 to 11 months, and females are thought to give birth every other year to a single calf
The page saysVaquitas are difficult to observe
The source saysThey are difficult to observe because of their small size
The page saysweightKg: 42
The source saysWeight 65 to 120 poundsNote: task #1114: the middle of NOAA's range (29 to 54 kg), Medium throughout, where the name guess gave Light. Not in a curated matchup

Source
02

Rojas-Bracho, Taylor & Jaramillo-Legorreta 2022

Rojas-Bracho, Taylor & Jaramillo-Legorreta (2022). Phocoena sinus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022: e.T17028A214541137.

The page saysThe IUCN assessed the vaquita as Critically Endangered in 2022
The source saysIUCN Red List category: Critically Endangered (CR).Note: assessment year 2022 is in the DOI/title (2022-1); GBIF copy gives category
The page saysCritically Endangered
The source saysIUCN Red List category: Critically Endangered (CR).Note: stats.conservationStatus

Source
03

Jaramillo-Legorreta et al. 2019

Jaramillo-Legorreta et al. (2019). Decline towards extinction of Mexico's vaquita porpoise ( Phocoena sinus ). Royal Society Open Science.

The page saysNearly continuous echolocation clicks that acoustic detectors can pick up
The source saysthey are readily detectable using acoustics because they produce a nearly continuous series of echolocation clicks
The page saysVaquitas are readily detectable by sound because they produce a nearly continuous series of echolocation clicks
The source saysthey are readily detectable using acoustics because they produce a nearly continuous series of echolocation clicks
The page saysA 2019 study estimated fewer than 19 vaquitas remained as of summer 2018
The source saysWe estimate fewer than 19 vaquitas remained as of summer 2018
The page saysA 2019 paper estimated that fewer than 19 were left by summer 2018.
The source saysWe estimate fewer than 19 vaquitas remained as of summer 2018
The page saysVaquitas produce a nearly continuous series of echolocation clicks, and with so few left they are detected by sound rather than sight.
The source saysthey are readily detectable using acoustics because they produce a nearly continuous series of echolocation clicksNote: vibe.reason; same source as the body claim

Source
04

Robinson et al. 2022

Robinson et al. (2022). The critically endangered vaquita is not doomed to extinction by inbreeding depression. Science.

The page saysa 2022 study in Science worked from a figure of about 10 in 2019
The source saysthe number in 2019 (~10)
The page saysA 2022 genome study suggests that the vaquita's long history of being rare has left it with a low burden of harmful gene variants, which lowers the risk of inbreeding depression
The source saysthe vaquita's historical rarity has resulted in a low burden of segregating deleterious variation, reducing the risk of inbreeding depression
The page saysIts simulations suggest the vaquita can recover if bycatch deaths are halted immediately
The source saysgenome-informed simulations suggest that the vaquita can recover if bycatch mortality is immediately halted
The page saysA genome study published in Science in 2022 used a figure of about 10 for 2019
The source saysthe number in 2019 (~10)

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.