Cetacean species inhabiting coastal and riverine habitats are experiencing rapid population declines. Efforts to protect these species in situ will not prevent their extinction. It is therefore urgent to apply additional tools that may optimize the survival probability of threatened species. In 2017, a unique capture operation was launched to transfer the last vaquitas into a controlled environment. It was the first time that an intervention measure was used to save a dolphin species. When the action was stopped after two unsuccessful captures, it became obvious that the action was taken too late and our knowledge of the species’ biology was too limited. Despite this failure for many dolphin species conservation intervention remains their last chance to survive. This presentation is meant to open discussions on a delicate but long overdue subject: how to integrate ex situ measures in small cetacean conservation planning.
