Bonn,
2 October 2008 - The decision to give 20
waterbird species - traditionally considered
as seabirds - greater international protection
was made at the Fourth Meeting of the Parties
to AEWA (MOP4) which was held in Antananarivo,
Madagascar from 15-19 September 2008.
At the meeting over
150 delegates from 80 countries adopted,
among others Resolution 4.11, which calls
for the inclusion of 20 additional waterbird
species in Annex 2 of the Agreement (AEWA
Annex 2: Waterbird Species to which the
Agreement Applies). The inclusion of these
species gives them greater international
protection and calls upon countries and
other stakeholders in the region to take
concrete action for those species that have
an unfavourable conservation status.
Most seabird populations
are highly threatened. Amongst the most
significant threats are food shortages due
to depletion of fish stocks, to which overfishing
and climate change both contribute. By-catch
in long-line fisheries, oil pollution and
solid waste (debris) are other problems
for seabirds. Further threats are destruction
of habitats and unsustainable human exploitation.
On-land threats include disturbances at
breeding sites and introduced terrestrial
predators.
Bert Lenten, the Executive
Secretary of AEWA said: "I am very
satisfied with the decision of the 4th Meeting
of the Parties to include 20 seabird species
in AEWA. This means that more attention
will be paid to the conservation of these
species. Some of them, such as the tropic
birds need urgent attention because their
populations are numbering less than 10,000
individuals."
At the request
of the Meeting of Parties the AEWA Technical
Committee, the international scientific
advisory body of the Agreement, reviewed
existing provisions and regulations related
to seabirds in international law. The outcome
of this review is that although a number
of provisions and regulations exist, the
threats seabirds are facing are insufficiently
covered by other Multilateral Environmental
Agreements in the African-Eurasian region.
The inclusion of these migratory seabird
species in the AEWA species list will help
fill this gap and provides the basis for
greater international efforts to conserve
these waterbird species, traditionally regarded
as seabirds.
Notes for Editors:
The 20 new seabird species that have been
included in Annex 2 of AEWA are:
Species Name / English Name
Phaethon aetheras / Red-billed Tropicbird
Phaethon rubricauda / Red-tailed Tropicbird
Phaethon lepturus / White-tailed Tropicbird
Sula (Morus) bassana / Northern Gannet
Sula dactylatra / Masked Booby
Fregata minor / Great Frigatebird
Fregata ariel / Lesser Frigatebird
Catharacta skua / Great Skua
Stercorarius longicaudus / Long-tailed Skua
Rissa tridactyla / Black-legged Kittiwake
Sterna anaethetus / Bridled Tern
Sterna fuscata / Sooty Tern
Anous stolidus / Brown Noddy
Anous tenuirostris / Lesser Noddy
Alle alle / Little Auk
Uria aalge / Common Guillemot
Uria lomvia / Brunnich’s Guillemot
Alca torda / Razorbill
Cepphus grylle / Black Guillemot
Fratercula arctica / Atlantic Puffin
AEWA Resolution 4.11, the full Technical
Committee Seabird Report and other information
related to seabirds please see:
www.unep-aewa.org/press
AEWA – The African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird
Agreement, or AEWA is a United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) backed treaty dedicated
to the protection of 255 species of waterbirds
which migrate along the African-Eurasian
Flyways. AEWA provides the framework for
countries in the region to work together
to conserve such species as ducks, waders,
storks, flamingos and many other migratory
waterbirds. Countries that have become Parties
to the Agreement commit themselves to putting
measures in place to conserve the region's
waterbird populations and the habitats on
which they depend. Currently 62 Parties
out of 118 Range States in Africa and Eurasia
have joined AEWA.
For more information on AEWA please see:
www.unep-aewa.org
MOP4 in Madagascar – Madagascar was host
country to the Fourth Meeting of the Parties
to AEWA (MOP4), which was jointly organized
by the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat and the Madagascan
Ministry of the Environment, Forestry and
Tourism (MEFT). At the meeting a total of
20 resolutions were adopted and delegates
reviewed the implementation of the Agreement
and Action Plan and addressed a number of
issues relating to the conservation of migratory
waterbirds. The theme of MOP4 was “Flyway
conservation at work – Review of the past,
vision for the future”.
Mr. Florian Keil, Information Officer, UNEP/AEWA
Secretariat
