A new report issued on Monday by a United Nations body warned that the situation of migratory animal species, which are essential to the balance of nature, such as albatrosses, turtles and sturgeons, is deteriorating.
“Migratory species are being hit hard,” said Inger Andersen, director of the United Nations Environment Programme.
The report indicated that one-fifth of the species listed in the 1979 Bonn Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals are threatened with extinction, while 44% of them are witnessing a decline in their numbers.
Almost all of the 58 listed fish species (97%) are threatened with extinction, as are some sharks.
“The phenomenon of species migration itself is in danger, because there are barriers, and the habitats that these animals need may be under pressure,” said Amy Frankel, Executive Secretary of the Convention.
The 130 signatories to the Convention will meet at the Fourteenth Conference of the Parties in the historic city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from February 12 to 17.
Conference participants are considering the fate of these migratory species, which include animals that have symbolic importance to life on Earth, such as sea turtles, whales, sharks, elephants, species of wild cats, and many species of birds.
These species are forced to migrate due to several factors, including searching for suitable climatic conditions, obtaining food, or seeking an ideal environment to raise their young.
– The future of races is in danger
The threats to these animals are directly linked to human activity: habitat loss, degradation or fragmentation due to intensive agriculture or overexploitation by hunting and fishing, as well as climate change.
Animals are also exposed to additional stressors such as pollution (pesticides, plastic, etc.), underwater noise or lights that disturb them.
“This report makes clear that unsustainable human activities are putting the future of migratory species at risk,” asserts Inger Andersen.
She points out that these creatures “not only act as indicators of environmental change, but also play a role in maintaining the functions of our planet's complex ecosystems and ensuring their resilience.”
These species actually provide several environmental services, such as pollination, transferring nutrients from one environment to another, or eliminating pests.
Bats, for example, play an important role in pollinating flowers and dispersing seeds, allowing mango or papaya trees to reproduce in some countries.
– Other species are threatened with extinction
The report not only strikes this grim note, but also calls for international cooperation to help animals that, by nature, know no borders and can sometimes travel thousands of kilometres. One of these species is the monarch butterfly, which can travel a distance of four thousand kilometers in North America.
“These are man-made challenges that can only be solved by humans,” Matthew Collis of the International Fund for Animal Welfare said in a statement.
He added, “Wildlife knows no borders, and it is our shared responsibility to ensure that these species can follow the migration paths long followed by their ancestors, in order to preserve their species and the important ecosystem services they provide to the world.”
The paths that the Samarkand conference will rely on will also reflect the Kunming-Montreal Convention on Biological Diversity, established in 2022, which plans to conserve 30% of the planet’s lands and seas by 2030. Therefore, the report calls for “the identification, protection and management of important sites.” for migratory species.
Other priorities include: combating illegal or unsustainable fishing, urgently caring for species most at risk of extinction or intensifying efforts to address various pollution (light, noise, plastic, chemicals…) and climate change.
The report also proposes expanding the list of species included in the convention to highlight other endangered animals.
The list includes nearly 400 threatened or near-threatened species that have not yet appeared on the convention's lists, such as the American and European bison or the Indus dolphin.
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