Overview of Vulpes and Mustela Taxa.Pdf

UNEP-WCMC technical report

Overview of the conservation status of and trade in species currently subject to EU Reservations: Vulpes vulpes griffithi, Vulpes vulpes montana, Vulpes vulpes pusilla, Mustela altaica, Mustela erminea ferghanae, Mustela kathiah and Mustela sibirica

(Version edited for public release)

Prepared for The European Commission, Directorate General Environment, Directorate E - Global & Regional Challenges, LIFE ENV.E.2. – Global Sustainability, Trade & Multilateral Agreements, Brussels, Belgium

Prepared September 2015

Citation UNEP-WCMC. 2015. Overview of the conservation status of and trade in species currently subject to EU Reservations: Vulpes vulpes griffithi, Vulpes vulpes montana, Vulpes vulpes pusilla, Mustela altaica, Mustela erminea ferghanae, Mustela kathiah and Mustela sibirica. UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge.

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Vulpes vulpes griffithi, Vulpes vulpes montana, Vulpes vulpes pusilla, Mustela altaica, Mustela erminea ferghanae, Mustela kathiah and Mustela sibirica were listed in CITES Appendix III by India in 1989. Nearly all EU Member States subsequently issued reservations against these listings and the taxa were included in Annex D of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97, which contains "the species listed in Appendix III to the Convention for which a reservation has been entered" (a notification filled in by the importer is sufficient for Annex D specimens to be imported into and exported from the EU; no permits issued by the MA are required). The EU is now assessing whether the current EU treatment of these listings is still appropriate, with the following options being available:

Option 1: Maintain the current EU approach against the implementation into EU law of the CITES Appendix III listing for the seven taxa concerned Arguments in favour: the rationale for opposing the Appendix III listing at the time remains valid. Next steps: the six remaining EU Member States which have not yet done so, as well as the EU itself, would need to enter reservations for the seven taxa concerned to ensure that they are not in situation of non- compliance with CITES.

Option 2: Implement into EU law the CITES Appendix III listing Arguments in favour: the EU and its Member States have a clear policy in support of CITES listings and against the issuing of reservations, so reasons in favour of a reservation need to be particularly strong. The reservations were issued more than 15 years ago and need to be revisited. In addition, if the export from EU Member States takes place with CITES export permits or re-export certificates (see above), then in practice the situation is not different from an Annex C listing, and it would be logical to withdraw the reservations. Next steps: EU Member States would have to withdraw their reservations, and Regulation (EC) No 338/97 would have to be amended to transfer the seven taxa from Annex D to Annex C.

Option 3: Consultation with India and SRG consultation Arguments in favour: clarify with India whether an Appendix III listing is still necessary and whether they would consider a delisting from the CITES Appendices. This would negate the need for the EU to maintain the reservations. Next steps: Commission to launch consultation with India and table their reply at a future Scientific Review Group meeting. The following section provides overviews of the conservation status and trade levels in these seven taxa to support the EU decision making process on the treatment of these reservations.

Overview of conservation status and trade levels

SPECIES: Vulpes vulpes griffithi Kashmir Fox

RANGE STATES: Afghanistan, Pakistan

IUCN: Least Concern (Vulpes vulpes), 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: Vulpes vulpes grifﬁthi was reported to occur in the Himalayas, northern and western areas of Pakistan, including the mountains and valleys of Bluchistan and North West Frontier Province (Awan et al., 2004). It was reported to often occur in close association with humans and to avoid dense forests (Awan et al., 2004).

Data on global population size or population trends were not found. In Pakistan, it was reported to be commonly distributed throughout the Machiara National Park from an altitude of 1500 to 3300m (Awan et al., 2004). A study in 2003 confirmed the presence of V. v. grifﬁthi in all studied areas of Machiara National park, Pakistan, through trapping, visual sightings and reports from local communities (Awan et al., 2004).

V. v. grifﬁthi has been reported to kill poultry as well as feeding on Royle’s pika and pheasant (Awan et al., 2004). Foxes were reported to be subject to severe persecution and hunting pressure in Afghanistan, but while V. vulpes was listed as a harvestable species, regular monitoring of populations was reported to ensure that hunting does not qualify the species for a protected status in the future (Macdonald and Reynolds, 2008).

TRADE: No trade was reported globally in V. v. griffithi over the period 2004-2013 (based on trade statistics in the CITES Trade Database).

SPECIES: Vulpes vulpes montana Tibetan Red Fox

RANGE STATES: Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, Pakistan

IUCN: Least Concern (Vulpes vulpes), 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: Vulpes vulpes montana was reported to be common in the Himalayas (Menon, 2014) and reported present in Sikkim and Punjab in India, Yunnan and Tibet in China Kumao in Nepal and Gilgit in Pakistan (Tiwari, 1999). In Nepal, the habitats of V. v. montana were reported to include thorn bushes, willows, scrub along dry rivers and cultivated land of subalpine zones between 300 and 5500m above sea level (Shrestha, 1997).

It was reported that V. v. montana pair for life and its diet was reported to include rodents, grounds birds as well as fallen fruit and berries (Shrestha, 1997). In India, the subspecies was reported to occasionally predate young lambs (Namgail et al., 2007).

In Pakistan, within the northern areas of Khunjerab National Park, a study in 1998 recorded 60 V. v. montana individuals, based on data from shepherds and tourist guides (Shafiq and Ali, 1998). The authors estimated the population size of the subspecies within the park to be 60 and reported that the population was gradually increasing (Shafiq and Ali, 1998).

No further information on the global population status and trends, or details on threats to the subspecies were identified.

TRADE: According to CITES trade statistics, the only direct trade globally in V. v. montana over the period 2004-2013 comprised of one captive-bred garment exported from the United States to the Netherlands in 2007, as reported by the exporter only, and one ranched skin exported from China to the United States in 2007, as reported by the importer only. All trade was for commercial purposes.

The only indirect trade globally comprised one captive-bred garment originating in Finland and re-exported by the United States to the Netherlands in 2007 for commercial purposes, as reported by the exporter only.

SPECIES: Vulpes vulpes pusilla Desert Fox

RANGE STATES: India, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Pakistan

IUCN: Least Concern (Vulpes vulpes)

CONSERVATION STATUS: In India, Vulpes vulpes pusilla was reported to be distributed in the desert of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan (Sharma and Sharma, 2013). It inhabits desert habitats and reportedly avoids dense forests (Sharma and Sharma, 2013).

Gajera and Dharaiya, (2011) reported that V. v. pusilla was recorded as rare within the study area of north Gujarat, India and within this area, the subspecies was restricted to arid saline desert. In the Rajasthan desert, India, V. v. pusilla was considered to be rare (Sharma and Sharma, 2013).

In Pakistan, bounties were reported to be offered on V. v. pusilla to protect valuable game birds such as Houbara Bustards Chlamydotis macqueenii (Macdonald and Reynolds, 2008).

TRADE: According to CITES trade statistics, the only direct trade globally in V. v. pusilla over the period 2004-2013 comprised of one ranched garment exported for personal purposes from Canada to the United States in 2008, as reported by the importer only.

The only indirect trade globally comprised of 49 captive-bred skin pieces originating in China and re-exported by Canada to the United States for commercial purposes in 2007, as reported by the importer only.

SPECIES: Mustela altaica Altai Weasel

RANGE STATES: China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (?), India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Tajikistan

IUCN: Near Threatened, 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: The habitat of M. altaica includes alpine meadows, steppes and forests from 1500 to 4000m (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). It feeds on small mammals, birds, amphibians and insects (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009), with its main prey item reported to be pika Ochotona spp. (Hornskov and Foggin, 2007; Bischof et al., 2014). The species was reported to have a gestation period of 35-50 days, with a litter size of two to eight (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009).

Very little appears to known about the ecology or conservation status of M. altaica (Hornskov and Foggin, 2007; Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). The species was reported to be in decline, at a rate of less than 30% over 10 years (Abramov et al., 2008). M. altaica was considered to be common but not abundant throughout its range; the population density was reported to fluctuate by 4 or 5 times, depending on prey abundance (Abramov et al., 2008).

The species was reportedly occasionally hunted, but was not considered important in the fur trade (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). However, habitat conversion was noted to contribute to the decline of the species (Abramov et al., 2008), as was eradication of prey items through pika- control (Hornskov and Foggin, 2007).

Within Nepal, M. altaica was recorded within just a few localities, including the Annapurna Conservation Area (Ghimirey et al., 2014), Sagarmatha National Park and Kanchenjunga Conservation Area (Katuwal et al., 2013 in Ghimirey et al., 2014) and from Thadodhunga, Humla district (Ghimirey & Acharya in prep. in Ghimirey et al., 2014). The population size in Nepal is unknown (Ghimirey et al., 2014).

In China, based on incidental reports by Hornskov and Foggin (2007) between 1995 and 2006 on the Tibetan plateau, the authors reported that the species was fairly common within this area.

TRADE:

Direct global trade in M. altaica in the period 2004-2013 comprised of plates, skin pieces, and skins exported from China to Italy (Table 1). No direct trade has been recorded since 2007 and no trade was reported to countries other than the EU-28. Indirect global trade in M. altaica comprised primarily of small numbers of wild-sourced garments traded for commercial purposes originating in China and re- exported via the EU-28 (Table 2).

Table 1: Direct global trade in Mustela altaica, 2004-2013. No trade was reported 2008-2013. Importer Exporter Term (unit) Purpose Source Reported by 2004 2005 2006 2007 EU28 China plates (m2) T W Importer 108 Exporter plates T W Importer 314 Exporter 268 - - Importer 304 Exporter skin pieces - - Importer 40 Exporter skins - - Importer 268 227 Exporter Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

Table 2: Indirect global trade in Mustela altaica, 2004-2013. No trade was reported in 2006, 2009, 2010 or 2012. Importer Origin Term Purpose Source Reported by 2004 2005 2007 2008 2011 2013 EU28 China garments T W Importer Exporter 1 France garments T R Importer Exporter 2 RoW China derivatives T W Importer 3 Exporter garments P W Importer 1 Exporter T C Importer 1 Exporter W Importer 9 8 4 5 Exporter 10 7 2 leather products (small) T W Importer 3 Exporter 1 skin pieces T W Importer 5 Exporter unspecified T W Importer 1 Exporter France garments T R Importer 2 Exporter Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

SPECIES: Mustela erminea ferghanae Stoat (subsp.)

RANGE STATES: Afghanistan, China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan

IUCN: Least Concern (Mustela erminea), 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: Mustela erminea ferghanae was reported to occur at altitudes of 3000- 4000m (Kotia et al., 2011). Its diet was thought likely to include voles, hares and pikas (Kotia et al., 2011).

At a species level, females of M. erminea produce only one litter per year; females delay implantation of the fertilized eggs for nine to ten months (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). Females become sexually mature at two to three months while males become sexually mature after a year (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). M. erminea is solitary and the population density depends on prey abundance, with 2-6 individuals/km2 (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). The species was considered to be abundant with a stable population, which, however, fluctuates strongly depending on prey supply (Reid and Helgen, 2008). No data on population status or trend for the subspecies were found.

This sub-species was reported to be rare in Ladakh, India (Kotia et al., 2011); its presence has also been reported from Kaghan Valley, Chitral and northern Swat up to 4000m in Pakistan (Roberts 1977 in Kotia et al., 2011).

No threats specific to the subspecies were identified, but the species was reported to be locally threatened by unrestricted trapping and habitat loss or disturbance (Reid and Helgen, 2008). TRADE:

Direct global trade in M. e. ferghanae in the period 2004-2013 comprised very small numbers of skins and manufactured items primarily of pre-Convention sources exported from Canada and Russia (Table 3). Indirect global trade in M. e. ferghanae comprised primarily of small numbers of pre-Convention manufactured items (Table 4). Table 3: Direct global trade in Mustela erminea ferghanae, 2004-2013. No trade was reported in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 or 2011. Importer Term Purpose Source Reported by 2004 2008 2009 2012 2013 EU28 carvings Q O Importer Exporter 1 leather products (small) - O Importer Exporter 2 skin pieces Q O Importer Exporter 1 skins T - Importer 1 Exporter RoW carvings Q O Importer 1 Exporter garments E O Importer 1 Exporter leather products (small) E W Importer Exporter 1 unspecified - O Importer Exporter 1 Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

Table 4: Indirect global trade in Mustela erminea ferghanae, 2004-2013. No trade reported in 2006 or 2011. Importer Term Purpose Source Reported by 2005 2007 2008 2009 2010 2012 2013 EU28 derivatives Q O Importer Exporter 1 hair Q O Importer Exporter 2 trophies - O Importer Exporter 1 RoW bodies T W Importer Exporter 1 carvings T O Importer Exporter 0.67 garments E O Importer Exporter 1 Q O Importer Exporter 1 1 T O Importer Exporter 1 hair Q O Importer 2 Exporter 2 leather products (small) E W Importer 1 Exporter Q O Importer Exporter 2 T O Importer 1 1 Exporter 1 Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

SPECIES: Mustela kathiah Yellow-bellied Weasel

RANGE STATES: Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Viet Nam

IUCN: Least Concern, 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: Mustela kathiah is a small carnivore (Phan et al., 2014) feeding on rodents, birds, eggs, lizards, amphibians and insects (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). It occupies habitats including montane evergreen forest, scrub and grassland, generally over 1000m above sea level (Phan et al., 2014) and up to 4000m (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). Within the Himalayas, it was found between 3000 and 5200m altitude, but occupied altitudes of 200m down to close to sea level in Hong Kong (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). Little was considered to be known about its reproduction or activity patters (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009).

The species was presumed to have large population due to its wide distribution, its presence within a number of protected areas and absence any major threats (Duckworth et al., 2008). It is also reported that “there is no reason to assume that this species is rare” (Duckworth et al., 2008). No information on the global population size, trends or threats facing M. kathiah was identified.

M. kathiah was first record in Cambodia in 2014 using camera traps (Phan et al., 2014). In Thailand, the majority of records are from the northern highland, but given the small number of reported records, the conservation status of the species within Thailand was considered to be unknown (Supparatvikorn et al., 2012).

TRADE: No trade was reported globally in M. kathiah over the period 2004-2013 (based on trade statistics in the CITES Trade Database).

SPECIES: Mustela sibirica Siberian Weasel

RANGE STATES: Bhutan, China, India, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Taiwan, Province of China, Thailand, Viet Nam

IUCN: Least Concern, 2008

CONSERVATION STATUS: Mustela sibirica occupies a wide variety of habitats including forests, forest steppe, mountains, villages and areas near swamps from 1500-5000m above sea level (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). M. siberica predominately feeds on small mammals, including pikas (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009), but also on pine nuts in the summer (Duckworth and Abramov, 2008).

M. sibirica is mainly nocturnal or crepuscular and individuals travel up to 8km a night; individuals remain solitary (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009). Mating is reported to occur in winter and early spring, with a gestation period of 33-37 days (Wilson and Mittermeier, 2009).

The population of this species was presumed to be large and the population status was thought to be stable (Duckworth and Abramov, 2008).

The species was reported to be widespread and common in Siberia and China, and common in northern central Korea (Duckworth and Abramov, 2008). The species was assessed as ‘Least Concern’ in Nepal, although information on the population size and potential threats in the country were considered to be unknown (Jnawali et al., 2011).

No major threats were reported (Duckworth and Abramov, 2008), although in China there was a reported market for pelts and heavy exploitation was considered a threat (Lau et al., 2010). The IUCN noted that population monitoring may be warranted to establish sustainable harvest levels for this species (Duckworth and Abramov, 2008).

In China, wild caught individuals were recorded in Chatou wildlife market in Guangzhou between 2002 and 2003, with fewer than ten individuals noted on each visit (Lee et al. 2004 in Lau et al., 2010). TRADE:

Direct global trade in M. sibirica in the period 2004-2013 comprised relatively high numbers of plates and other terms primarily of wild sources exported from China and Russia (Table 5). Indirect global trade in M. sibirica comprised relatively high numbers of hair and hair product primarily of wild sources originating in China (Table 6).

Table 5: Direct global trade in Mustela sibirica, 2004-2013. Values rounded to the nearest whole number, where applicable. Importer Term Purpose Source Reported by 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 EU28 derivatives - - Importer 15 Exporter garments T U Importer 6

Importer Term Purpose Source Reported by 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 EU28 garments Exporter (cont.) (cont.) W Importer 168 431 236 202 471 640 2973 587 514 410 Exporter - - Importer 2 3 Exporter hair T W Importer 3506 490 211 504 243 154 236 161 93 81 Exporter 96 - Importer 331 Exporter - - Importer 30 110 141 Exporter leather - O Importer products (small) Exporter 1 live T U Importer 2 Exporter plates T W Importer 19754 22136 24501 12620 12673 9328 10554 7724 6604 3818 Exporter - U Importer 150 Exporter - Importer 400 3736 170 931 20 10 Exporter skin pieces - - Importer 700 Exporter skins Q O Importer Exporter 4 T W Importer 882 Exporter - - Importer 1030 49 100 2200 Exporter tails T W Importer 7021 11027 6230 3034 9000 9000 5200 7521 9500 Exporter 16000 unspec. - O Importer Exporter 1 RoW garments T W Importer 1 Exporter hair T C Importer 1 4 4 18400 Exporter 5 53500 I Importer 1220 1500 6 1320 130 Exporter U Importer 135 Exporter W Importer 22 Exporter 5 hair prod. P W Importer 1 Exporter T I Importer 18 3 29 8 3 1120 4225 542 Exporter W Importer 27922 31338 13006 27311 Exporter 29518 30782 31979 live T C Importer 7 Exporter 3 I Importer 7 Exporter Z C Importer 3 Exporter - - Importer 9 Exporter 7 plates T I Importer 200 Exporter W Importer 350 Exporter skin pieces T W Importer 1 Exporter specimens S W Importer 21 Exporter - - Importer 24 Exporter trophies H W Importer 1 Exporter Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

Table 6: Indirect global trade in Mustela sibirica, 2004-2013. Values rounded to the nearest whole number, where applicable. Importer Term Purpose Source Rep. by 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 EU28 derivatives Q U Importer 1 Exporter garments T W Importer 13 4 Exporter 42 4 2 1 - - Importer 1 1 1 Exporter hair T W Importer 10 1 30 42 73 Exporter 45 leather prod. (S) Q O Importer Exporter 1 plates T W Importer 19 Exporter 27 44 - - Importer 300 22 Exporter skin pieces T W Importer Exporter 12 tails - - Importer 3000 Exporter RoW carvings T W Importer 193 Exporter cloth T W Importer 1 Exporter 190 derivatives T W Importer 73 2375 3377 2172 Exporter garments P C Importer Exporter 1 O Importer Exporter 2 W Importer Exporter 1 1 1 Q O Importer Exporter 1 T C Importer 1 7 1 6 Exporter 3 F Importer 1 Exporter I Importer 10 16 2 3 2 70 68 Exporter R Importer 1 262 Exporter U Importer 2 1 Exporter W Importer 119 110 112 72 31 206 13 17 38 21 Exporter 401 154 196 89 69 45 35 38 37 57 hair P I Importer 5 Exporter S W Importer Exporter 2 T C Importer 678 17 Exporter I Importer 350 44150 2503 1656 409 5104 10509 1 Exporter O Importer Exporter <1 W Importer 10399 12010 122 24018 17060 26448 29434 311882 83412 28345 Exporter 59109 58150 48405 37196 27519 110026 57185 141966 207381 22397 - Importer Exporter <1 <1 hair prod. H W Importer 1 Exporter P I Importer 2 4 Exporter W Importer 11 Exporter Q W Importer 1810 Exporter T C Importer 1248 4549 186 1434 128

Importer Term Purpose Source Rep. by 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 RoW hair prod. Exporter (cont.) (cont.) I Importer 4843 4820 2068 8495 12340 7691 10279 19399 Exporter 8 W Importer 104889 96715 66946 130288 291736 258252 283904 214885 65508 Exporter 38565 27605 17462 265657 leather T W Importer 1 products (large) Exporter leather P W Importer products Exporter 2 (small) Q W Importer 1 Exporter T I Importer 12 2 Exporter W Importer 200 Exporter 9228 2000 plates T I Importer 102 Exporter W Importer 105 256 196 45 134 15 6 Exporter 758 340 884 399 435 374 75 61 78 30 shoes P W Importer 2 Exporter T W Importer 264 Exporter skin pieces P I Importer 1 Exporter T C Importer 2 Exporter I Importer 1 Exporter W Importer 65 1 Exporter 358 54 117 skins Q O Importer Exporter 1 T W Importer 500 4 Exporter 2 42 131 5 skulls T U Importer 16 5 Exporter tails T W Importer 26 Exporter unspec. T W Importer 5871 Exporter Source: CITES Trade Database, UNEP-WCMC, Cambridge, UK, downloaded on 03/09/2015

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