Species Newsletter of the Species Survival Commission Number 46, July – December 2006 Rue Mauverny 28 1196 Gland Switzerland Tel: +44 22 999 0000 Fax: + 44 22 999 0002 [email protected] The World Conservation Union ww.iucn.org Species 46 Contents 25 From the SSC Steering Committee Photo Credits 3 One Programme, One Voice Sub-groups Cover White-tailed or sea eagle (Haliaeetus A joint message from the SSC Chair and Head of 25 Invertebrate Conservation sub-committee albicilla) has been adversely affected by the the Species Programme 25 Marine Conservation sub-committee construction of a wind farm on the Smøla islands in Norway, with increased adult 6 Specialist Group Chair Profiles Part III 26 News Features mortality and reduced breeding success. Final focus on SSC’s Unsung Heroes 26 Review of the definition and selection of protected By Chris Gomersall/rspb-images 6 Chiroptera (bats) areas for species conservation Page 10 Wind turbines 7 Cuban Plant 28 Ramsar adopts a new site selection criterion Courtesy of rspb-images 7 Mollusc 29 Tributes to two of SSC’s champions – Ralph Daly and Page 12 Wind farm on the Smøla islands, Norway 8 Otter Bertrand des Clers By Rowena Langston 9 Primate Page 13 White-tailed or sea eagle (Haliaeetus 9 Seaduck 31 News Round-Up albicilla) 31 West African black rhino feared Extinct By Chris Gomersall/rspb-images 10 Feature 31 Amphibian Global Action Team needed to avoid an Page 14 Wood bison (Bison bison athabascae) and Wind energy and wildlife: the effects of wind extinction catastrophe Plains bison (B.b. bison) farms on birds 31 Conservation of a coral reef giant – the humphead By C. Cormack Gates Case Study: the effects of wind turbines on wrasse Page 17 Whooping cranes (Grus americana) white-tailed eagles on SmØla, Norway 31 Fencing spells disaster for the last of China’s following ultralight aircraft Przewalski’s gazelles By International Crane Foundation 14 From the Specialist Groups 31 SSC crane expert receives Indianapolis Zoo Page 19 Cantabrian capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus 14 African rhino Conservation Award cantabricus) 14 Amphibian 32 The Behler Award for freshwater turtle conservation By Isolino Pérez Tuya 15 Bison (N. America) 32 The World Conservation Union mourns Nepalese Page 20 Anegada iguana (Cyclura pinguis) release 15 Conifer helicopter crash victims By Lee Pagni 16 Conservation Breeding 32 CITES puts ivory sales on hold Page 24 Seahorse (Hippocampus abdominalis) 17 Crane 32 Landmark achievement in whooping crane By Jonathan Clark-Jones/Project Seahorse 17 Crocodile conservation Page 24 Radio-collaring a mountain tapir (Tapirus 18 Deer 32 Rich marine life in the heart of South-east Asia’s coral indicus) 19 Flamingo triangle protected By Diego Lizcano 19 Grouse Page 25 Ochre Presba dragonfly 19 Iguana 33 IUCN Species Programme Update By Michael Samways 20 Invasive Species 33 Biodiversity Assessments Page 26 Wilderness in Namibia 20 Marine Turtles 33 Communications By Thomasina Oldfield 22 Medicinal Plants 34 Freshwater Page 28 Wetlands in Latvia 22 Molluscs 35 Red List By Tobias Salathé, Ramsar 23 Sustainable Use 36 Species Information Service Page 29 Humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) 23 Syngnathid (seahorses) RLA 36 Species Trade and Use (Wildlife Trade) By Valerie Ho 24 Tapir 37 End Notes Page 35 Indri (Indri indri) By Jean-Christophe Vié 37 Publications 38 Species staff changes Contributions to Species 47 should be sent to Team Species by 17 April 2007. Email: [email protected] For address changes, notify: Nathalie Velasco Species Species is the newsletter of the Species Survival Commission of IUCN—The World Conservation Union. Species Program, IUCN Commission members, in addition to providing leadership for conservation efforts for specific plant and Rue Mauverney 28 animal groups, contribute to technical and scientific counsel to biodiversity conservation projects throughout the world. They provide advice to governments, international conventions, and conservation organizations. CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland Team Species – Andrew McMullin with assistance from Sarah Webborn Phone: +44 22 999 0268 Fax: +44 22 999 0015 Layout – NatureBureau Email: [email protected] Cover Photo – Chris Gomersall/rspb-images.com Hard copies of Species are available only upon request. Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect official views of IUCN/SSC SSC members are encouraged to receive the SSC monthly ISSN 1016-927x electronic news bulletin. Please contact Team Species at Species is printed on recycled paper [email protected] for more information. Species is available ©2006 IUCN—The World Conservation Union electronically at: www.iucn.org/themes/ssc/ One Programme, One Voice A joint message from the SSC Chair and Head of the IUCN Species Programme Another whirlwind year has passed and we have meantime, constructive meetings have been held reached the mid-way point in IUCN’s 2005–2008 between the Commission Chairs and IUCN Senior Quadrennium. The Species Survival Commission Management – ensuring that the Commission issues (SSC) and the Species Programme (SP) have, despite and inputs are considered at a high level and in the some huge challenges, also celebrated some implementation of ‘one’ IUCN programme. important successes. The SSC’s Restructuring Task Force has been At a recent meeting of the SSC Steering Committee, working diligently to address the conclusions of the floor was opened for our standing agenda item several external reviews that highlighted the need on SSC success stories. Over 12 examples were to renovate our 60 year-old model to enhance its shared within the space of 10 minutes – just off relevance and impact. So far, our energies have the top of our heads! Among these were stories of focused on clearly articulating the main functions new species being discovered, successful required of the SSC and its reintroduction programmes, persistence of membership in order to exploited species and conservation initiatives that formulate a more efficient It certainly is an exciting time are working to snatch species from the brink of structure for delivery. To this extinction. It certainly is an exciting time to be part end, the Task Force was to be part of the species of the species conservation team. mandated to continue their conservation team Administratively, the year has been quite consultations and planning challenging. Network support has suffered due to with a view to having a firm the cutting of two positions in the SP. Faced with strategy in place for a roll out in the next this network support challenge, fundraising has Quadrennium. been a priority for all of us. Unfortunately, One governance issue that is not progressing as fast sometimes being the biggest and arguably the best as hoped is the Commission Online Registration known of IUCN’s Commissions is accidentally System (CoReg). By comparison to the other equated with having the most resources to hand Commissions, SSC is very large and therefore the and this often undermines our fundraising efforts. registration of all our members is proving to be a On the positive side of administration, however, is complicated and lengthy task. We urge you to go the recruiting and restructuring that is on-going online and update your information as soon as you following a programmatic review of in the SP early receive your passwords – this is to ensure that we in 2006. Current recruitments include an have your correct contact details and that you are administrative support position in Cambridge and officially considered a member of the SSC. a replacement communications person for Gland. Though we would all love to spend our time in the A Senior Commission Officer for the SSC Chair’s field doing what we enjoy most, every year Office in Cape Town is also being recruited. The SP important conservation meetings require our is developing a fundraising strategy and priority list, undivided attention. At the Eighth Meeting of the and a number of interesting and modern Conference of the Parties to the Convention on fundraising approaches are being explored. One of Biological Diversity (CoP 8) we hosted two side our agreed priorities is to recapitalize and revitalize events, participated in others and worked to secure the Sir Peter Scott Fund, with the aim of making a mandate for the development, testing and delivery small but immediate funds available to Specialist of biodiversity indicators for measuring progress Groups on a competitive basis. towards the CBD’s 2010 target. CITES continues to Governance-wise, IUCN has appointed a dynamic be a focus, and we participated in the ‘CITES and new Director General, Julia Marton-Lefèvre, who Livelihoods Workshop’ (which deliberated the will take up the position in January 2007. She is no impact of CITES regulations on local livelihoods) stranger to IUCN (as a former Deputy Chair of the and the 54th CITES Standing Committee meeting. Commission on Education and Com-munication), SSC also continues to work with the Convention and has excellent skills in inter-national relations on Migratory Species and recently co-hosted a and development as well as an extensive successful series of meetings on the saiga antelope. environmental and governmental network. In the We are working to refine our relationships with 3 ■ ■ Species 46: July–December 2006 ■ ■ TRAFFIC, our Red List partners, the Alliance for Zero Within IUCN, the SSC has been involved in a Extinction, the Consortium for the Barcode of Life number of initiatives. The SSC and SP joint input to and others. There is an almost endless flow of the Mangroves for the Future (MFF) Initiative (a individuals and organizations seeking partnership US$62million project that is being developed by with the SSC, and we are grateful for their continued the IUCN, UNDP and partners as a follow up to the interest. 2004 tsunami and subsequent restoration efforts) Some other important initiatives began or came to was well received and incorporated into the final fruition in 2006.