Endangered Species

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000: Tiger recovery efforts progressing, urgent action still needed to fight poaching - WWF - News about the conservation of endangered species
New Delhi, India – Tiger range countries in their first meeting to review efforts on doubling the number of wild tigers by 2022, reported significant progress, but recognized that urgent and elevated action is still needed to halt poaching.

“Steady progress is being made towards meeting the goal of doubling wild tiger numbers,” said Mike Baltzer, Leader of WWF’s Tigers Alive Initiative. “But tiger range governments must urgently and seriously step up action to eliminate poaching if they do not want their investments to go to waste.”

In November 2010 at the “Tiger Summit” in St. Petersburg hosted by the Government of Russia and the World Bank, the 13 Tiger Range Governments and partners committed to doubling the number of wild tigers by 2022 (TX2). They presented the Global Tiger Recovery Program (GTRP), which represents the plans towards meeting this goal.

The meeting in New Delhi, held from 15-17 May 2012, was the first time since the Tiger Summit that senior government officials from all 13 countries have met to review progress on implementation of the GTRP and plan the next steps.

Before the meeting, WWF released results of a preliminary assessment of 63 legally protected areas in seven tiger range countries that showed only 22, or 35%, maintain WWF’s minimum standards of protection. This indicated that tigers in most of the protected areas are still very vulnerable to poaching.

Poaching of tigers, to feed consumer demand for their body parts and products, is now the main factor reversing the gains made by governments, donors and other partners working towards the 2022 goal. Nearly all tiger range countries spoke of the poaching problem and efforts they are taking on the ground to tackle it. These include strengthening capacity and introducing new, innovative law enforcement monitoring tools, such as M-STrIPES and SMART, to better manage protected areas with tigers. They also considered new approaches to reduce consumer demand for tiger derivatives.

“We are pleased that the approaches we recommended on demand reduction are being considered to support implementation of the GTRP,” said Sabri Zain, Director of Advocacy and Campaigns, TRAFFIC International. “It is critical that we implement new approaches to changing consumer behaviour if we are to successfully stem out poaching in the long run and therefore in achieving TX2.”

During the meeting, TRAFFIC also presented new figures from its latest research into the rising number of tiger part seizures taking place in Asia. With 53 seizures occurring each year, levels remain high. The analysis also identified persistent tiger trade hot-spots such as Kathmandu, Hanoi and the Russia/Northeast China border. It is essential that a tiger trade monitoring system be established as information such as this can assist enforcement efforts in the field where it is most needed.

In a sign indicating tiger range countries are increasingly working together to save the tiger across their borders, the meeting witnessed the signing of a bilateral agreement on trans-border cooperation between India and Nepal and another between India and Russia.

''This gathering of tiger range states shows that the momentum to save tigers is indeed building, but the pressure on the species continues,” said Ravi Singh, Secretary-General and CEO, WWF-India. “Coordinated anti-poaching measures across tiger range states are called for. These need to be scaled up and implemented urgently to achieve zero poaching."

WWF is supporting tiger range countries in their enforcement efforts through both training and helping to develop computer-based, law enforcement monitoring systems. It has also identified three actions tiger range governments can take immediately to launch an elevated operation towards Zero Poaching. These include identifying and delineating the most important sites requiring good protection from poaching, and ensuring these sites have sufficient numbers of enforcement staff who are well trained to monitor and improve their effectiveness by using monitoring systems. WWF also suggests that the police and judiciary need to help to ensure strict punishment on poaching and to actively engage local communities living adjacent to important tiger conservation areas.

For further information:

Soh-Koon Chng, WWF Tigers Alive Initiative, +65 9772 2552, skchng@wwf.org.my

Aarti Khosla, WWF-India, +91-98111-99288, akhosla@wwfndia.net

Dilpreet B. Chhabra, TRAFFIC India, +91-98990-00472, dchhabra@wwfindia.net
Sun, 13 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000: Saving one turtle at a time in Bali - WWF - News about the conservation of endangered species
By Aimee Leslie, WWF's Marine Turtle and Cetacean Manager

Indonesia is 90% Muslim, but Bali is the exception, which is 90% Hindu. The Hindu community of Bali has traditionally used marine turtles for religious ceremonies for decades. Consumption of these turtles summed between 10,000 and 20,000 a year.

It is no secret that changing a tradition, specially a religious one is no easy task; but WWF-Indonesia was determined to do so. The local veterinarian and Hindu, I.B. Windia Adnyana, was aware of the problem and took matters into his own hands. He joined forces with his brother, a local religious leader to talk to the Hindu community and let them know that the turtle ritual could have dire consequences for the survival of the local populations.

The religious leaders listened and wanted to help, but could not eliminate a practice that was still intrinsically knit into their customs. Besides, the whole village of Serangan Island depended mainly on the sales of adult turtles to the Hindu community.

None the less, the local government joined in, and in 1999, measures were agreed on. Only 300 marine turtles per year would be culled for religious purposes. These turtles would be provided only through a permit authorized by the local government. The turtles would only come from the Turtle Education Centre, to be built by the government in Serangan Island.

The Turtle Education Centre would only use five Olive Ridley turtle nests a year, to raise the turtles for Hindu religious ceremonies. This is because adult nesting turtles have a much higher value for the future of their population. In nature only 1 out of every 1000 hatchlings born survives long enough to achieve sexual maturity.

Since 2006 the Turtle Education Centre has been up and running. It provides the Serangan village with more income than they ever had when dedicated to the illegal turtle trade. Students and tourists go to the Centre to see and learn about marine turtles. Though this is not the ideal solution, we’re in the process of getting there. WWF and its local partners were able to make a difference for Indonesia's marine turtles, one turtle at a time.