CMS COP15 Ends in Brazil
Context:
The 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) recently concluded in Campo Grande, Brazil.
The summit marked a critical juncture in global biodiversity efforts, culminating in the decision to add 40 new species of migratory birds, aquatic, and terrestrial animals to its protected list categories amid mounting evidence of extinction risks.
Key Additions to the Protected List:
The newly protected group comprises a diverse range of highly vulnerable species that cross international borders.
Prominent additions to the CMS protected list include:
Terrestrial Mammals: The cheetah and the striped hyena.
Aquatic Species: The giant otter and the great hammerhead shark.
Avian Species: The snowy owl and several species of threatened shorebirds.
Escalating Extinction Risks:
Beyond the new additions, the conference highlighted deeply concerning trends regarding already listed species.
A report presented at the summit revealed that 26 CMS-listed species have now been moved to a higher extinction risk category.
Alarmingly, this group predominantly includes 18 species of migratory shorebirds, indicating severe degradation of coastal, riverine, and wetland habitats globally.
Vulnerability of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs):
The summit also featured a critical analysis that mapped over 9,000 Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs).
These are defined as specific places that are strictly irreplaceable for sustaining various species and ecosystems.
The analysis delivered a stark warning with 47 per cent of the total geographic area covered by these vital KBAs currently falls entirely outside any formal kind of protection or conservation framework.
About Key Biodiversity Areas (KBA’s):
Key Biodiversity Areas are locations that have an extraordinary amount of significance for the maintenance of biodiversity
They are categorized according to predetermined criteria and fall into one of five primary groups viz.
endemism (geographically restricted biodiversity);
biological processes;
ecological integrity;
endangered (threatened) biodiversity
irreplaceability
There are around 16,000 KBAs spread across over 200 countries, encompass around 8.85 per cent of the earth's terrestrial surface.