Participants
expressed concern about the sustainability
of current levels of trade in skins of three
species of snakes used in luxury products
Long-tailed macaque used in biomedical research,
sturgeons, seahorses and shark-fishing regulations
also under review
Geneva, 22 July 2011
- The 25th meeting of the Animals Committee
of the Convention on International Trade
in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES) closed today with key scientific
findings for the conservation and sustainable
use of several reptiles, marine species
and amphibians. A record number of over
200 delegates, from fifty countries, attending
the meeting expressed concern about the
sustainability of current levels of trade
in skins of three species of snakes used
in luxury products and an other 20 animal
species used in biomedical research, the
food industry or as pets.
The Committee examined
recent recorded trade in three snake species
originated in South-east Asia: Ptyas mucosus
(Oriental rat snake), Python reticulates
(Reticulated python) and Naja sputatrix
(Indonesian cobra). This 'Review of Significant
Trade' is a unique peer review and compliance
mechanism developed by CITES to assess the
sustainability levels of biological resources
in trade. The Committee largely endorsed
snake-related recommendations identified
in a previous workshop held in China that
include tightening the controls on snake-breeding
facilities and the supply chain for skin
trade.
Snakes from the forests
and jungles of Asia play a vital role within
their ecosystems. For example, if snakes
were to disappear from the rice fields or
other crop-producing landscapes of Asia,
their prey, left behind with no predator
to control their numbers, could have devastating
effects on agricultural production, food
security and national economies. Snakes
are consumed for food, traditional medicines
and skins. They are also sold as pets and
found in expensive luxury leather goods
and accessories, in the boutiques of Europe
and North America. Their skins are often
processed in various countries of re-export
along the way.
The Committee also examined
volumes of international trade in the long-tailed
macaque (Macaca fascicularis) used in biomedical
research and originating mainly in China,
Indonesia and Cambodia. This macaque has
experienced a rapid surge in international
trade since 2004 and of all the mammals
listed in the CITES Appendices is the species
most traded in live form.
Mr Carlos Ibero, Chair
of the Animals Committee, declared that
"many of the individual species that
have been reviewed and considered at this
meeting occur in Southeast Asia, which has
become a sort of hotspot for wildlife trade".
"This is due to the fact that it is
a region rich in biodiversity with an increasing
prosperous population as well as many people
relying on wildlife for their living",
he added.
The Committee also reviewed
stock assessment methodologies for sturgeons
and paddlefish in the Caspian Sea, a group
of fish in high demand for their eggs (sold
as caviar). Several range States present
at the meeting announced a moratorium on
wild sturgeon fishing for 2011, including
Azerbaijan and Iran. The Committee recognized
the insufficient sturgeon stock assessment
expertise in the region as a major impediment
to the progress in implementing previous
recommendations and requested CITES, FAO
and other international organizations to
provide financial and technical support
for the implementation of a three-phase
work-plan focused on stock-assessment activities,
including training and capacity building.
CITES experts also remain
concerned about the status of sharks and
requested the CITES Secretariat to collaborate
closely with the FAO Secretariat in the
review of the implementation of the International
Plan of Action for the Conservation and
Management of Sharks (IPOA-Sharks) requested
by the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI),
in particular the inclusion of trade information
and the review of shark regulations adopted
by Regional Fishery Management Organizations
(RFMOs), including stock assessments, ecological
risk assessments, conservation and management
measures.
Several endemic species
from Madagascar, including chameleons and
frogs, and seahorses from Southeast Asia,
were also identified as a priority under
the CITES Review of Significant Trade.
The Animals Committee
finally recognized the progress made in
the conservation of the saker falcon (Falco
cherrug) in Mongolia and endorsed the positive
management regime for this species used
for hunting activities in the Middle East.
The Committee agreed to Mongolia's proposed
export quota of 300 live specimens for 2011.
In closing the meeting,
CITES Secretary-General, John E Scanlon,
highlighted that: "sound science goes
to the core of the Convention, and thanked
the Animals Committee and all Observers
for the time and expertise they volunteer
to the work of the Convention". "The
work of the Committee over the past five
days again highlights the very operational
and pragmatic nature of CITES in addressing
'real world', on-the-ground conservation
and sustainable use challenges" said
Scanlon.
The CITES Animal Committee
provides the technical and scientific basis
for the sustainability of international
trade in live specimens, parts and derivatives
from over 4,500 species of animals.
