Hírek a nagyvilágból

The official logo for the 12th Session of the Conference of the Parties to CMS was officially launched today (2:00 pm Manila time) at a ceremony held in the Senate of the Republic of the Philippines. The Conference (CO12) will take place in Manila from 23 to 27 October with the theme: “Their Future is Our Future: Sustainable Development for Wildlife and People”, linking the efforts undertaken under CMS to protect endangered migratory wildlife to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed by world governments in an historic summit held in September 2015.

An overarching workshop to develop a Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP) took place from 16 to 19 February in the historic city of Toledo, Spain, at the kind invitation of the Spanish Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha.

Raising awareness and engaging the public is an important aspect of nature conservation. People protect what they care about, and to care, some knowledge is necessary. People power also drives action by governments and the private sector. It is the same for ASCOBANS. Institutions and people throughout the Agreement Area play an important role in spreading the word about threats and dangers to marine mammals, and ways in which each person can help.

Dr Zeb Hogan, the host of the National Geographic TV Show “Monster Fish” and COP-appointed CMS Scientific Councilllor for fish, is leading a new project, the Wonders of the Mekong

An International Action Plan for vultures is being developed at an expert meeting convened by the Coordinating Unit of the Raptors MoU under the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) in from 16 to 19 February in Toledo, Spain. The plan aims to prevent the further decline of vultures which are nature’s primary scavengers, providing indispensable ecological services as carrion feeders and disposers of disease-carrying carcasses.

The fourth of a series of regional workshops to develop a Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP) took place from 6 to 9 February in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). The workshop was held as a part of the 18th Sharjah International Conservation Forum for Arabian Biodiversity (SICFAB), at the generous invitation of the Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA) of Sharjah.

A recent report on the health of the ocean found that worldwide the marine vertebrate population declined by 49 per cent between 1970 and 2012 (see WWF/ZSL Living Blue Planet Report 2015). Globally, an estimated 300,000 small whales, dolphins and porpoises die each year from entanglement in fishing gear. Also in Europe, incidental catch is seen as the greatest threat to small cetaceans. However, the situation is much more complex than one might think.

In the Hollywood blockbuster The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013), the adventurous photographer Sean O’Connell decides not to take a picture of a snow leopard because he wishes to appreciate the unique moment of spotting the elusive and beautiful ‘ghost cat’.
В голливудском блокбастере «Невероятная жизнь Уолтера Митти» (2013), фотограф Шон О'Коннелл решает не фотографировать снежного барса, потому что он хочет оценить уникальный момент обнаружения неуловимой и красивой «призрачной кошки».

Today is ‘World Wetlands Day,’ a global annual celebration of the vital socio-environmental role of wetlands and the anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands (1971) in the Iranian city of Ramsar. This convention, more commonly known as the Ramsar Convention, is a central partner of CMS and a fellow member of the Biodiversity Liaison Group. It has 169 Contracting Parties and covers over 2,200 wetland sites (with a combined area of more than 2.1 million square kilometres).

Reports have reached the Secretariat that an outbreak of what is thought to be peste-des-petits ruminants (sheep and goat plague) is occurring among the Saiga Antelopes in Mongolia, where already more than 1,000 individuals have died and the epidemic is continuing.