big wins for wildlife at major UN conference for migratory species

Anyone following IFAW updates in recent days will have seen that IFAW’s policy experts have been working hard to achieve positive outcomes for some of our most vulnerable species of wild animals at a key inter-governmental conference in India.

With the 13th CoP (Conference of the Parties) to the UN Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) drawing to a close in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, we can celebrate some significant wins with governments agreeing to give increased protection to the Asian elephant, jaguar and oceanic whitetip shark.

Because animals don’t recognise national borders, and regulations to protect threatened species in one country don’t follow them when they cross boundaries into other countries, CMS was founded in 1979 with the aim of ensuring nations with threatened migratory species work to coordinate conservation measures to protect these animals and their habitats.

There was good news for the iconic jaguar, which can be found across 19 states of the Americas, but has suffered the loss of 40% of its habitat over the last 100 years. It is threatened by further loss of habitat and key migratory corridors, as well as being at risk from illegal wildlife trade. Attending government representatives from the 130 member parties to CMS accepted the proposal to list it on both Appendix I and Appendix II of CMS.

An Appendix I listing means countries must prohibit the deliberate killing and harassment of a species. An Appendix II listing urges countries to work together to protect species across their range, including by forming specific agreements if necessary. The listing of the jaguar should lead to greater cooperation to conserve the animals and their habitat throughout their range.

The Asian elephant was also listed for the first time at CMS and host country India announced its intention to work with other Asian elephant range states to form a regional agreement with collective actions to safeguard the animal, which is classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List.

Asian elephants suffer from habitat loss and fragmentation as well as illegal killing for their ivory and other products, such as skin, which has fuelled poaching to supply a growing demand for elephant skin jewellery. In addition, Asian elephants are regularly victims of retaliatory attacks due to human-elephant conflict and can be killed by contact with human infrastructure, such as collisions on roads and railways.

Also listed on Appendix I of CMS at this meeting was the oceanic whitetip shark. Once one of the world’s most common sharks, it is now Critically Endangered, with losses of 98-100% due to overfishing driven by demand for their fins for use in shark fin soup. Hence it was one of IFAW’s key species for urgent action at CoP13. The listing awarded the oceanic whitetip the highest level of protection possible, meaning it should no longer be caught throughout its range.

Other important areas of conservation work were also approved at the meeting, including work to tackle marine noise and bycatch, and the taking forward of a new initiative to better protect African carnivores, such as cheetahs, leopards, lions and wild dogs.

The CMS is also pioneering work that is unique in international environmental agreements, such as recognising for the first time the importance of the individual in animal society and linking this to conservation. Chimps using tools to crack nuts and the complex social structure and communication within subspecies of sperm whales were highlighted as examples of this, encouraging governments to use scientific knowledge of these cultural behaviours to better inform actions to protect them. This aligns with IFAW’s approach to animal welfare and conservation, as we strive to protect individual animals as part of efforts to save whole populations.

The decisions taken at CMS meetings are, however, just the first step, and in many ways, the easy part, although it often does not feel like that at these meetings. These decisions represent commitments by government to act. However, many decisions need to be translated into domestic laws and policies when governments return home from these meetings.

The listing of shark species is an example of this. Currently, only 28% of CMS Parties have fully implemented protections for Appendix I-listed sharks. As a crucial safeguard for endangered migratory shark species, global implementation of the legally binding provisions of CMS is critical to prevent further risk of extinction. This is why IFAW and partner NGOs work with a number of governments to build capacity and provide technical support to governments looking to manage effectively CMS-listed sharks. 

The next CMS CoP will take place in just over three years’ time, but before then, there is much work to do and IFAW will be taking part in a number of other important international policy forums in the meantime. In fact, this year is shaping up to be a busy year for key conferences for wildlife. Find out more about the 10 most important meetings in 2020 here.