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This event discussed work on connecting conservation strategies with managing the spread of disease in migratory wildlife.
Borja Heredia, CMS Secretariat, introduced the Scientific Task Force on Wildlife Disease, jointly organized between the CMS and FAO. He described how, following the positive experience of work on avian influenza, it was decided that a wider task force on wildlife disease would be established.
Ruth Cromie, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, provided an overview of the Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza. She said that the aim of the Task Force was to ensure that international efforts to contain avian influenza do not overlook vital information concerning migratory species and other broader environmental considerations. Cromie outlined that the task force, inter alia, provides: information and guidance for policy makers; information sharing via an email network; collaboration on resolutions; and recommendations for Multilateral Environmental Agreements like the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AWEA), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands and the CMS.
Scott Newman, FAO EMPRES, presented on the Scientific Task Force on Wildlife Disease. He outlined their ‘One Health’ strategy, which provides an integrated approach to wildlife, ecosystems and people, with the aim of “finding balanced solutions” to bridge the gap between national resource managers and public health. Newman said that the task force encourages “rumor-tracking,” using the natural resource and biology communities to report on morbidity and mortality via the Wildlife Health Event Reporter (WHER) database.
Martin Wikelski, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, presented on ‘Migration Ecology and Implications for Disease Transmission.’ He used work conducted on bats to illustrate the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) loggers and Advanced Research and Global Observation Satellite (ARGOS) transmitters to link their movements with disease spread. He introduced the MoveBank database as another tool for relating species’ migratory patterns to disease incidence. |
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This event provided an overview of the transboundary conservation efforts underway to protect and conserve the Argali mountain sheep in its range states.
Christiane Röttger, CMS Secretariat, introducing the side-event, highlighted a number of transboundary initiatives under the CMS to protect species in Central Asia, including the Saiga antelope Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and the Bukhara deer MoU. She noted that the MoUs are linked to the Central Eurasian Aridland Mammals Initiative, which has developed a draft action plan in which the Argali mountain sheep is included. She also noted a draft proposal to have the Argali mountain sheep listed in the CMS appendices.
Kathrin Uhlemann, GIZ, said that threats to the Argali mountain sheep include unsustainable hunting and poaching across all range states and domestic livestock through both competition for grazing land and possible disease transmission. On their conservation status and protection measures, Uhlemann noted hunting bans in Afghanistan, India and Kazakhstan as well as the establishment of protected areas in all range states. She called for: increasing joint efforts for transboundary conservation; improving the legal framework and capacity building for the sustainable management of hunting; and rolling out community-based conservation approaches.
Tanya Rosen, Wildlife Conservation Society, presented conservation efforts undertaken in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. On Tajikistan, she noted the role of well-managed trophy hunting in the conservation of Argali mountain sheep as well as the need to regulate pasture use, restrict grazing seasons and strengthen the legal status of hunting concessions. On Afghanistan, she noted the role of the Wakhan Pamir Association in conserving Argali mountain sheep, the need to reduce foraging competition with domestic livestock and to address the role of border fences in the migration of Argali mountain sheep along the Chinese borders shared with Tajikistan and Afghanistan.
Presenting on Kyrgyzstan, Almaz Musaev, State Agency on Environmental Protection and Forestry, Kyrgyzstan, noted the implementation of laws to create incentives for sustainable hunting practices and increase capacity of hunters, in addition to ensuring equitable benefit sharing with local communities. Askar Davletbakov, National Science Academy of Kyrgyzstan, noted future steps in Argali mountain sheep conservation include clarifying its conservation status and investigating migration routes.
On Kazakhstan, Sergey Sklyarenko, Association for the Conservation of Biodiversity of Kazakhstan, said that there has been a total ban on hunting Argali mountain sheep since 2003, and penalties for hunting include fines of approximately US$ 15,500 with possible imprisonment of up to three years.
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Coverage of Selected Side Events at the Tenth Conference of the Parties (COP 10) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS)
