WCC 2016 Res 022 - Activity Report

Submitted by roger.safford on Tue, 01/30/2018 - 11:17

General Information

Conservation measures for vultures, including banning the use of veterinary diclofenac

IUCN Constituent:

BirdLife International

IUCN Constituent type:

IUCN Member

Period covered:

2017

Geographic scope:

Global

Africa

European Union (EU)

South and East Asia

Country/Territory:

Botswana

Ethiopia

Kenya

Nigeria

Zambia

Zimbabwe

In implementing this Resolution your organization has worked/consulted with...

IUCN Members:

BirdLife Botswana ( BLB ) / Botswana

Bombay Natural History Society ( BNHS ) / India

Nature Kenya - The East Africa Natural History Society ( EANHS ) / Kenya

Nigerian Conservation Foundation ( NCF ) / Nigeria

Bird Conservation Nepal/Nepal Panchhi Samrakchyan Sangh ( BCN ) / Nepal

BirdLife South Africa ( BLSA ) / South Africa

Endangered Wildlife Trust ( EWT ) / South Africa

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds ( RSPB ) / United Kingdom

BirdLife Zimbabwe ( BLZ ) / Zimbabwe

IUCN Commissions:

F717E09E-5094-E611-97F4-005056BA6623

IUCN Secretariat:

Yes

Other non-IUCN related organisations:

Birdwatch Zambia, Vulture Conservation Foundation, CMS Secretariat - Raptors MOU, Painted Dogs Conservation, The Peregrine Fund,

Implementation

Indicate and briefly describe any actions that have been carried out to implement this Resolution:

Action	Description	Status
Convene stakeholders/Networking	Completion and facilitation of adoption of Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP) by CMS parties at CMS COP12 in October 2017. This was coordinated by BirdLife, working with the CMS Raptors MOU Coordinating Unit, IUCN SSC Vulture Specialist Group and Vulture Conservation Foundation.	Completed
Education/Communication/Raising awareness	All anti-poisoning activities described under 'Field Activities' below include strong components of awareness-raising and education on the importance of vultures and impacts of poisoning. As a further example involving the essential collaboration with other conservatoin groups, BirdLife Zimbabwe and Painted Dogs Conservation have strengthened community involvement in anti-poisoning activities being implemented in Hwange, where wildlife poisoning is a serious problem.	On-going
Field activities	Actions to save Africa's vultures from poisoning have been implemented in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Zambia by BirdLife Partners. These include working with communities and national authorities to develop and implement protocols for rapid response to poisoning and management of human-wildlife conflict, including awareness-raising and training. This is already believed to have averted more than one poisoning incident. BirdWatch Zambia have created 40,000 ha Vulture Safe Zones in and around the Chisamba IBA and Luangwa Valley, and aim to add a further 40,000 ha in 2018. BirdLife is one of 14 global partners jointly implementing "Urgent Actions to Strengthen the Balkan Population of the Egyptian Vulture and Secure Its Flyway" project, to deliver urgent conservation measures towards eliminating major known threats to the Egyptian Vulture along its flyway, aligning with both the Neophron Flyway Action Plan for the Conservation of the Balkan and Central Asian Populations of the Egyptian Vulture and the Vulture MsAP. The African project countries include Nigeria, Ethiopia, Niger and Chad.	On-going
Field activities	As a Partner in the SAVE (Saving Asia's Vultures from Extinction) consortium, BirdLife's activities in support of S and SE Asian Vulture conservation are described in a separate report from Chris Bowden. In Europe, several BirdLife Partners are taking action for vultures with particular attention to Egyptian Vulture in Eastern Europe, and to advocating for the banning of vulture-toxic veterinary Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs, in particular diclofenac in Spain and Italy and across the EU; the campaign continues at the time of writing.	On-going
Policy influencing/advocacy	The Nigerian Conservation Foundation is working to combat Illegal Wildlife Trade involving vultures and their body parts for belief-based use in Nigeria, through a workshop involving Ogun, Ondo, and Osun States, involving law enforcement and prosecution agencies, national and sub-national transport unions, traditional healers associations, government ministries, departments and Ministries, the wildlife women traders associations, and religious associations. A communiqué outlining the agreement and resolutions made by workshop participants was produced.	On-going
Scientific/technical activities	BirdLife Partners are contributing, or facilitating contributions, to poisoning databases including African Wildlife Poison Database, and where necessary supporting national compilations such as the bird mortality database in Zimbabwe. BirdLife Partners have established baseline breeding and nesting data for cliff and tree nesting vulture species at various sites in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Rwanda and Ethiopia, and Vulture movements are being satellite-tracked through BirdLife projects in Kenya and Zambia (alongside many other tracking initiatives on African vultures). Among a range of activities in support of vulture conservation, BirdLife South Africa are investigating impacts of lead poisoning on Cape and White-backed vultures in South Africa.	On-going

Please report on the result /achievement of the actions taken:

Development of the Multi-species Action Plan has generated strong consensus and collaboration to advance vulture conservation in Africa and elsewhere. The development of a 'Vulture Safe Zone' in Zambia, while in need of expansion, marks the first example of such an approach for vultures in Africa, building on lessons from South Asia. Even though in its infancy, the anti-poisoning rapid response mechanism in Kenya is believed to have averted more than one mass poisoning event.

What challenges have you encountered in implementing this Resolution and what measures have you taken to overcome them?:

Poisoning is a highly complex problem, driven by powerful and intractable forces such as ivory trade and human-carnivore conflict, and will take many years to overcome. Alliances with other conservation groups also concerned with poisoning, are essential and have been launched in Kenya and Zimbabwe, for example.

Identify and briefly describe what future actions are planned for the implementation of this Resolution:

Future Action	Description
Convene stakeholders/Networking	Drive forward implementation of the Vulture MsAP, and fundraising to achieve this. Further events towards this aim are planned in 2018.
Education/Communication/Raising awareness	Continue programmmes to promote vultures in a positive light to decision-makers and the public, including by demonstrating the their ecosystem service value.
Field activities	Continue and expand anti-poisoning programmes in Africa with development of an emergency funding mechanism; replicate approaches in additional countries. This includes a strong Capacity-building element. See separate report from Chris Bowden regarding future actions in S and SE Asia under the SAVE consortium of which BirdLife is a member.
Policy influencing/advocacy	Continue to advocate bans on vulture-toxic veterinary Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs, in particular diclofenac, across the EU and elsewhere. Increase efforts to address threats of collision and electrocution with energy infrastructure through sensitivity mapping in East Africa and the Red Sea flyway. Expand efforts to combat the threat of belief-based use of vulture body parts in West Africa, focusing on Nigeria.
Policy influencing/advocacy	Support national vulture action planning and develoment of guidance to implement Vulture Safe Zones as an essential landscape approach to conserving these wide-ranging birds.

Additional Information

External link(s):

CMS Multi-species Action Plan to Conserve African-Eurasian Vultures

BirdLife webpage with information on vulture conservation programmes

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WCC 2016 Res 022 - Activity Report