CMS expected to take major policy decisions on endangered species

Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 16

The thirteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) at Gandhinagar will take major policy decisions on 10 critically endangered species across the World, including three species with home in India/subcontinent—Great Indian Bustard, Asian Elephant and Bengal Florican.

The important UN huddle on conservation and sustainable use of migratory animals and habitats under the theme “Migratory species connect the planet and we welcome them home” will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.

Migratory species move from one habitat to another for sunlight, food, weather and other reasons and member parties or countries are responsible for conserving/restoring their place of habitat and controlling factors that might endanger them while migrating.

Also known as Bonn convention, the CMS provides a global platform to discuss these issues and is only global convention specialising in the conservation of migratory species, their habitats and migration routes.

The CMS this time will also discuss the Central Asian Flyway—the fly path over Indian subcontinent which birds like Amur Falcon follow to reach Somalia from North China via India.

In the current context, the particular issue holds greater significance. “Of the nine migratory bird flyways, the Central Asian Flyway goes from India. The Amur falcon migrates from China, comes to Nagaland and then goes to Somalia using this flyway. At the CoP we will have some discussions to conserve this flyway,” Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar was quoted as saying.

The session, meanwhile, will witness inclusion of 10 new species for protection. The three endangered Indian Species to be added are Asian Elephant, Bengal Florican and Great Indian Bustard. With just around 200 surviving individuals, the Great Indian Bustard is a critically endangered species as per the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Earlier found widespread in India and Pakistan, the Great Indian Bustard population declined due to lack of protection and rampant hunting. Likewise the Bengal florican which is also called Bengal bustard. It too is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List.

But neighbours like China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and the countries of Southeast Asia not being party to the Convention can impact the working and decision-making, experts fear.

While their migratory path/ corridors need to be protected for future’ survival, these species face continuous threats like human-wildlife conflict, extreme weather events, habitat fragmentation and landscape changes, all of which require coordinated efforts and compliance.

Other species to be added to the protection list are Jaguar, Urial, Little Bustard, Antipodean Albatross, Oceanic White-tip Shark, Smooth Hammerhead Shark and Tope Shark. At present, 173 species from around the world are included in Appendix 1 of the CMS. However, as per officials and experts, despite best efforts population of migratory species is on a decline and need more action.