Contributing to the conservation of the harbour porpoise is the objective of this project of the Coordinator for the Study of Marine Mammals (CEMMA). Contributing to the conservation of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena), one of the most endangered species at the national level, is the objective of the project that the Coordinator for the Study of Marine Mammals (CEMMA) has launched with the support of the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, within the framework of its call for grants.
 
The actions of the initiative begin this month in the waters of the Galician coast, with the aim of establishing a new conservation category for the harbour porpoise, so that it goes from “vulnerable” to “in danger of extinction” in the National Catalogue of Threatened Species. To this end, CEMMA technicians and volunteers, specialized in carrying out ketological sampling, will carry out aerial sampling and another from a boat along the entire coast of Galicia from September 10. These tasks will allow scientific data to be obtained that show that the population evolution of the species is negative.
 
Thus, the data from records available in the waters of the northwest of the peninsula from 1990 to 2014 will be analyzed, which will be compared with the results of the 2015 campaigns. All in order to know the density, population size and distribution area of the species. Another objective is to know the main threats suffered by the harbour porpoise and that affect the volume of its population.
 
With the information obtained, a proposal will be made to change the conservation category of this cetacean. In addition, a population monitoring protocol will be developed, with a view to the future Conservation Plan of the species. The project is expected to be completed next February.