Bonn Convention
Encyclopedia
Animal
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
s (also known as CMS or the Bonn Convention, not to be confused with the Bonn Agreement
Bonn Agreement (environment)
The Bonn Agreement is a European environmental agreement.Following several oil spills in 1969, the coastal nations of the North Sea formed the Bonn Agreement to ensure mutual cooperation in the avoidance and combatting of environmental pollution....
) aims to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
throughout their range. It is an intergovernmental treaty, concluded under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme
United Nations Environment Programme
The United Nations Environment Programme coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. It was founded as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in June 1972 and has its...
, concerned with the conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale. Since the Convention's entry into force, its membership has grown steadily to include over 100 Parties from Africa, Central and South America, Asia, Europe and Oceania. The Convention was signed in 1979 in Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
(hence the name) and entered into force in 1983.
Migratory species threatened with extinction are listed on Appendix I of the Convention. CMS Parties strive towards strictly protecting these animals, conserving or restoring the places where they live, mitigating obstacles to migration and controlling other factors that might endanger them. Besides establishing obligations for each State joining the Convention, CMS promotes concerted action among the Range States of many of these species. As of January 2011 there are 176 species in Appendix I.
Migratory species that need or would significantly benefit from international co-operation are listed in Appendix II of the Convention. For this reason, the Convention encourages the Range States to conclude global or regional Agreements.
In this respect, CMS acts as a framework Convention. The Agreements may range from legally binding treaties (called Agreements) to less formal instruments, such as Memoranda of Understanding, and can be adapted to the requirements of particular regions. The development of models tailored according to the conservation needs throughout the migratory range is a unique capacity to CMS.
Several Agreements have been concluded to date under the auspices of CMS. They aim to conserve:
- Populations of European Bats (EUROBATS)
- Cetaceans of the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMSACCOBAMSACCOBAMS, the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans in the Black Sea,Mediterranean Sea and contiguous Atlantic area is ‘a cooperative tool for the conservation of marine biodiversity in the Mediterranean and Black Seas’....
)
- Small Cetaceans of the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANSASCOBANSASCOBANS is a regional agreement on the protection of small cetaceans that was concluded as the “Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic and North Seas” under the auspices of the UNEP Convention on Migratory Species, or Bonn Convention, in September 1991 and came into force...
)
- SealsPinnipedPinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
in the Wadden SeaWadden SeaThe Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of Frisian Islands, forming a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. It is rich in biological diversity...
(Wadden Sea AgreementWadden Sea AgreementAgreement on the Conservation of Seals in the Wadden Sea is an agreement between Wadden Sea countries, aimed at protection of seals and concluded in the aegis of Convention on Migratory Species in 1990.-Seals:...
)
- African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWAAEWAThe Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds is the largest of its kind developed so far under the Bonn Convention. It was concluded on 16 June 1995 at The Hague, the Netherlands and entered into force on 1 November 1999 after the required number of at least fourteen...
)
- AlbatrossAlbatrossAlbatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes . They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific...
es and PetrelPetrelPetrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group...
s (Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and PetrelsAgreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and PetrelsThe Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels is a legally binding international treaty signed in 2001.It was created in order to halt the drastic decline of seabird populations in the Southern Hemisphere, particularly albatrosses and procellariids...
)
- Gorillas and Their Habitats (Gorilla agreementGorilla agreementThe Agreement on the Conservation of Gorillas and Their Habitats, also known as the Gorilla Agreement, is an international treaty that binds the Parties to conserve gorillas in their territories. It was concluded 2007 under the auspices of the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals , also...
)
In addition, several Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) have been concluded to date under the auspices of CMS. They aim to conserve:
- the Siberian CraneSiberian CraneThe Siberian Crane also known as the Siberian White Crane or the Snow Crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes...
- the Slender-billed CurlewSlender-billed CurlewThe Slender-billed Curlew, Numenius tenuirostris, is a bird in the wader family Scolopacidae. It breeds in marshes and peat bogs in the taiga of Siberia, and is migratory, formerly wintering in shallow freshwater habitats around the Mediterranean...
- Marine Turtles of the Atlantic Coast of Africa (Marine Turtles in Africa MoUMarine Turtles in Africa MoUThe Memorandum of Understanding concerning Conservation Measures for Marine Turtles of the Atlantic Coast of Africa was concluded under Convention on Migratory Species auspices and became effective on 1 July 1999. It will remain open for signature indefinitely...
)
- Marine Turtles of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asia (IOSEAIOSEAis an intergovernmental agreement that aims to protect, conserve, replenish and recover marine turtles and their habitats of the Indian Ocean and South-East Asian region, working in partnership with other relevant actors and organizations....
)
- Middle-European Population of the Great BustardGreat BustardThe Great Bustard is in the bustard family, the only member of the genus Otis. It breeds in southern and central Europe, where it is the largest species of bird, and across temperate Asia...
- the Bukhara Deer
- the Aquatic WarblerAquatic WarblerThe Aquatic Warbler, Acrocephalus paludicola, is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It breeds in temperate eastern Europe and western Asia, with an estimated population of 15,000 pairs. It is migratory, wintering in west Africa...
- West-African Populations of the African Elephant
- the Saiga AntelopeSaiga AntelopeThe saiga is a Critically Endangered antelope which originally inhabited a vast area of the Eurasian steppe zone from the foothills of the Carpathians and Caucasus into Dzungaria and Mongolia. They also lived in North America during the Pleistocene...
- Cetaceans of the Pacific Islands Region
- Western African Aquatic Mammals (Small Cetaceans and Manatees)
- Mediterranean Monk Seal
- DugongDugongThe dugong is a large marine mammal which, together with the manatees, is one of four living species of the order Sirenia. It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest modern relative, Steller's sea cow , was hunted to extinction in the 18th century...
- Ruddy-headed GooseRuddy-headed GooseThe Ruddy-headed Goose is a large sheldgoose, which breeds in southernmost South America.It breeds on open grassy plains in Tierra del Fuego, Chile and the Falkland Islands. The South American birds are now very rare. They winter on lowlands in southern Argentina, some distance north of the...
- Grassland Birds
A Secretariat under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) provides administrative support to the Convention. It is based in the UN Campus in Bonn, Germany. The decision-making organ of the Convention is the Conference of the Parties (COP). A Standing Committee provides policy and administrative guidance between the regular meetings of the COP. A Scientific Council consisting of experts appointed by individual member States and by the COP, gives advice on technical and scientific matters.