On the brink of extinction, the elusive vaquita has become a global symbol for the biodiversity and environmental crisis facing the Earth's oceans.
Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, the vaquita (Phocoena sinus), is a species of porpoise endemic to the shallow waters of Mexico's Gulf of California. These mammals are the smallest of all living cetaceans (which includes dolphins, porpoises and whales) and in a 2025 survey, only 7-10 individuals were found in the wild – a huge decline from the late 1990s, when there were around 600.
Declining numbers have been caused mostly by accidental entanglements in fishing nets, particularly those used to illegally catch the totoaba – a large fish whose fishing was banned decades ago.
Measuring around five feet in length, little is known about the life history of the vaquita (which is Spanish for ‘little cow’). It can be recognised by its rounded head, black patches around its lips and eyes and its tall, triangular dorsal fin.
Now, researchers have digitally preserved the vaquita by scanning a rare and complete skeleton of a female donated to the San Diego Natural History Museum in 1966.
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In a study published in Marine Mammal Science, researchers from Florida Atlantic University (FAU), in collaboration with the Museum, SeaWorld California and NOAA Fisheries, used CT scans, micro-CT imaging and digital photography to create one of the most comprehensive digital anatomical records of a vaquita.
Preserving in pixels
“By combining advanced imaging technologies with open-access data sharing, the effort not only safeguards a valuable record of one of the planet’s most endangered marine mammals, but also makes that information accessible to anyone,” explains Jamie Knaub, the first author of the study and an imaging lab assistant and PhD candidate at FAU.
“The project will enable the production of scientifically accurate replicas for museums, classrooms and educational programs, helping to raise awareness and support conservation efforts for a species now teetering on the edge of extinction.”
The scans created thousands of cross-sectional images of the skeleton’s bones and then 3D imaging software was used to reconstruct them into detailed 3D models.
“This project required an unusually intricate imaging workflow to capture the vaquita skeleton at multiple scales, from whole-bone structure down to microscopic internal detail,” Marianne E. Porter, a senior author of the study and professor at FAU.
The original specimen is both fragile and exceptionally rare, which meant that direct handling and public access are extremely limited. To expand access, the resulting 3D models have been made freely available through the online repository MorphoSource.
“This kind of integrated technological environment is what allows specimens like the vaquita to be preserved and shared at a level of detail that simply wasn’t possible until recently,” adds Tricia L. Meredith, co-author of the study and the director of research at FAU Lab Schools.
Top image: full skeleton of a rare female vaquita specimen collected in 1966. Credit: Jamie Knaub/Florida Atlantic University
