Upper Gulf of California, Mexico
#00270
PartialRegion
Implementer
Government of Mexico with fishing communities and conservation partners
Location
Upper Gulf of California, Mexico31.1000, -114.7000
Description
PACE-Vaquita sought to eliminate vaquita bycatch by enforcing gillnet restrictions, withdrawing fishing effort, testing alternative gear and compensating fishers. The IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group reports that 230 artisanal boats were withdrawn and 105 participated in gear replacement, supported by about USD 26 million before 2015. About 600 boats continued using gillnets in vaquita range and illegal totoaba fishing expanded, so the population continued to collapse despite these measures.
Metrics
3Artisanal boats withdrawn from fishing230boats
Artisanal boats participating in gear replacement105boats
Boats reported to continue gillnet fishing in vaquita range600boats
Funding
$26,000,000 · Government of Mexico conservation expenditure reported before 2015
Lessons learned
- A restricted refuge cannot protect a species whose lethal bycatch occurs across its full range.
- Alternative gear programs must produce usable, legal and economically viable fishing methods at the scale required — not just enroll boats.
- Compensation, enforcement and community participation must persist together; failure in any one component can undermine the entire program.
- Program outputs such as boats enrolled do not demonstrate success when the target species continues to decline — population trend must be monitored as the primary indicator.
Sources
3