Coinciding with the Fourteenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP14), the report “State of the World’s Migratory Species” was published last week. The report sheds light on the challenges faced by migratory species worldwide, including migratory freshwater fish and underscores the urgent need to protect the vital ecosystems that they inhabit.
The report shows that the decline of migratory fish populations is particularly alarming, with an average decrease of 90% since 1970 for the 37 species evaluated. Nonetheless, out of the 1189 listed migratory species included under the CMS, only 58 are migratory fish and only 9 are freshwater. This underlines the fact that despite their ecological and economic importance, freshwater species are typically overlooked in conservation efforts.
The State of the World’s Migratory Species report emphasizes the need to protect, connect and restore habitats for the conservation of migratory species. Crucial is the promotion of ecological connectivity. There are more than 1.2 million longitudinal barriers on rivers in Europe. To achieve ecological connectivity, it is necessary to ensure that habitats along migratory pathways remain interconnected and functional. This closely aligns with the goals of the Wetlands International Europe lead Trans-European Swimways Programme, which aims to safeguard and restore the migratory routes of freshwater species in Europe. The Programme is identifying Swimways of European Importance (SEIs) and coordinating advocacy through collaboration within the Trans-European Swimways Network (TEN-S).
Despite this, the outcomes of the CMS COP14 are somewhat disappointing for freshwater fish. Of the 14 new species added to the CMS, 2 are migratory freshwater fishes; both are catfish found in the Amazon. This is somewhat surprising taking into account that prior to the COP, a briefing document prepared by the IUCN outlined freshwater fish species of potential interest for inclusion in CMS. This was in response to a draft decision [UNEP/CMS/COP14/Doc.27.7.2/Rev.1], urging parties to propose the inclusion of additional threatened species in the CMS appendices before the next COP. Of the 87 species identified and proposed for inclusion by the IUCN, 17 species are found in Europe, and are transboundary and threatened according to the IUCN Red List. These include 6 sturgeon species, the European eel, and 3 salmon species. We regret that these additional threatened species found in Europe were not added to CMS Appendices for protection.
More encouragingly the draft decision on Freshwater Fish [UNEP/CMS/COP13/Doc.27.7.2/Rev.1] was adopted at last week’s CMS COP14. It encourages the sharing of data on transboundary freshwater migratory fish species, and for Parties to propose the inclusion of threatened migratory fish species in the future.
Whilst we welcome the State of the World’s Migratory Species report, addition of species to CMS and adoption of this resolution, we feel it is a missed opportunity that more concrete actions weren’t achieved for migratory freshwater fish species during this COP, given the dire state of their populations outlined in the State of the World’s Migratory Species report.
“Wetlands International Europe welcomes the State of the World’s Migratory Species report which highlights the dire state of migratory freshwater fish species and reinforces the need for our Trans-European Swimways Programme. However, we deeply regret that CMS Parties did not fully adopt IUCN’s recommendations and bring more European freshwater fish species under CMS. Given their parlous state and the urgent need to recover their swimways it is a major missed opportunity” says Chris Baker, Director of Wetlands International Europe.