Vanquita on the Brink: World’s smallest and gentlest porpoise nears extinction, by Fatima Ma’aji Muhammad Story by Fatima Ma’aji MUHAMMAD (student at Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt) Hidden in the shallow waters of the northern Gulf of California lives the vaquita, the world’s rarest marine mammal. Small, shy, and rarely seen, this porpoise has become a powerful symbol of how human activity can drive a species toward extinction. The vaquita, meaning “little cow” in Spanish, is the smallest cetacean, measuring just over five feet long. It is easily recognised by the dark rings around its...