28
Nov 2008 - Rome, Italy - The first meeting
of the Parties of the Gorilla Agreement,
to be held in Rome tomorrow, is expected
to come up with practical proposals to further
gorilla conservation work in Africa.
The meeting is being
held against a backdrop of increasing humanitarian
crisis from continuing conflict in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC), with the Virunga
National Park home to nearly a third of
the world’s remaining mountain gorillas.
The Gorilla Agreement
came in to effect in June 2008 and is the
first to legally oblige governments to work
together to combat the threats faced by
gorillas in the wild, and find coordinated
solutions for gorilla conservation by requiring
collaboration on issues such as anti-poaching
and law enforcement.
“Ten countries will
walk away from this meeting united under
a single plan to save gorillas,” said Dr
Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF International’s
Species Programme. “In a time of global
financial crisis, and terrible hardship
for the people of Eastern Congo, we are
heartened to see these governments coming
together.”
Today’s meeting occurs
on the eve of the United Nations announcement
of 2009 as the ‘Year of the Gorilla’, part
of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable
Development. “Getting the agreement signed
was a great conservation achievement,” said
David Greer, Coordinator of WWF’s African
Great Apes Programme.
“It is now time for
action, which is what today’s meeting is
all about. Together, we will look specifically
at what steps each government will take
to ensure gorillas have a secure future
in the wild—through direct conservation
action in a way that also benefits local
communities.”
All gorillas are listed
as critically endangered on IUCN’s Red List
of Threatened Species with the exception
of the eastern lowland gorilla, which is
still listed as endangered due to a lack
of recent data to support the critically
endangered listing - researchers were unable
to access a major portion of their habitat.
Poaching, habitat loss disease, and intensifying
civil strife are the main threats to these
animals.
Mountain gorillas are
a prime example of why today’s Gorilla Agreement
meeting is critical. The mountain gorilla
population in the Virunga Volcanoes area,
which straddles Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, continues to face
habitat degradation as well as the civil
war unrest. Despite these difficulties,
surveys indicate that the population is
gradually increasing due to extensive conservation
efforts, and the continued support of local
communities in spite of all odds.
“Despite the success
of mountain gorilla conservation thanks
to the empowerment and awareness created
with local people by the International Gorilla
Conservation Programme (IGCP), we remain
vigilant, as the recurrent conflicts in
the region may still affect the survival
of this species,” stated IGCP Director Eugene
Rutagarama.
The IGCP is a joint
partnership of WWF, African Wildlife Foundation,
and Fauna and Flora International, and works
specifically on mountain gorilla conservation.
It has played an integral role in the recent
increases in the mountain gorilla population
in the Virunga Volcanoes area. The Gorilla
Agreement meeting has the potential to help
IGCP and the governments of Uganda, Rwanda,
and the Democratic Republic of Congo work
together to protect mountain gorillas.
“Plans are just plans
– what is urgently needed is concrete follow
up,” said Dr Lieberman. “ WWF will be calling
for timelines for implementation of these
actions, and for technical and financial
support from the global community for this
agreement.”
+ More
WWF scientist lands
international conservation award
03 Dec 2008 - Dr Samantha
Petersen, a biologist with WWF, the conservation
organisation, has won a prestigious international
award for her research into the impact of
commercial fishing on migratory seabirds,
sea turtles and sharks.
Dr Petersen is the WWF
Responsible Fisheries Programme Manager.
Her entry to the 2008 UNEP/CMS Thesis Award
on Migratory Species Conservation was judged
the winner among those submitted by 32 candidates
from 18 countries.
Another South African,
Dr Ross Wanless, won 3rd place with his
research on Impacts of the introduced house
mouse on the seabirds of Gough Island.
Dr Lin Xia's thesis
on Traffic Disturbance to the Migration
of Tibetan Antelopes (Pantholops hodgsoni)
in Hoh-xil National Nature Reserve took
2nd place.
The award is sponsored
annually by National Geographic Deutschland,
Deutsche Lufthansa, Zoological Research
Museum Koenig and CMS.
The judges noted that
Dr Petersen's thesis on Understanding and
Mitigating Vulnerable Bycatch in southern
African Trawl and Longline Fisheries has
made a significant contribution to improving
the affected species' conservation status.
The document urges a holistic approach toward
sustainable use of marine resources.
Dr Petersen says: "This
award is very gratifying as the exposure
will help drive further research and action
to help save these vulnerable species from
extinction.
"Our work in this
sphere is absolutely crucial now. In the
last decade concern globally has grown over
the impact of bycatch on these species,
especially in longline and trawl fishing,
which decimated their populations. It's
estimated that 75% of global fish stocks
are either exploited to their maximum or
over-exploited and that around 25% of marine
resources landed are dumped.
"This has led to
a catastrophic decline in vulnerable marine
life, including the loss of up to 90% of
the large predatory fish."
Dr Morne du Plessis,
CEO of WWF in SA, says: "This is an
important award as it demonstrates not only
the scientific expertise in WWF and in SA's
scientific community, but also highlights
the growing concern over the impact of human
activity on marine resources."
