United States’ CoP16 Proposals

1. United States’ CoP16 Proposals Dr. Rosemarie Gnam U.S. Scientific Authority Western Hemisphere Migratory Species Initiative Steering Committee Meeting

2. U.S. CoP16 Proposals • Animals • Polar Bear • Asian Soft-shell Turtles • Asian Hard-shell Turtles • Roti-Island Snake-necked Turtle • Burmese Star Tortoise • Big-headed Turtle • Diamondback Terrapin • Blanding’s Turtle • Spotted Turtle • Oceanic Whitetip Shark • Plants • Ginseng Annotation • Laguna Beach Live-forever and Santa Barbara Island Live-forever

3. Polar Bear • Transfer to CITES Appendix I • Qualifies under Annex 1, paragraph C) ii) of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15): • Subject to projected/inferred decrease in area of habitat (sea ice) and quality of habitat by mid-century • Affected by trade: • About 800 polar bears harvested annually • About 400–500 polar bears exported/re-exported annually • Need to apply a precautionary approach

4. Polar Bear • Declined during 1960s–1970s. Total population size at that time unknown. • Current population estimate of 20,000-25,000. • Estimate uncertain due to lack of new information and has remained unchanged since 1993. • Projected decline of the global polar bear population by two-thirds (66%) by 2050 (w/in 38 years) due to climate change. • IUCN: >30% loss over three generations (45 years).

5. Polar Bear Precautionary Approach − including Polar Bear in Appendix I is: • Necessary: to ensure that primarily commercial trade does not compound the threat posed to the species by the loss of habitat.  • Warranted: • Scientific uncertainty in total population size and current trends of several subpopulations; • Reduction in summer sea ice extent; • Inherent vulnerability of the species due to its low reproductive rate; and • Influence that commercialization of an increasingly rare species can have.

6. Polar Bear Benefits of Appendix I-listing and other considerations: • Fewer polar bears would be subjected to international trade. • Polar bear populations could be more resilient and less vulnerable to other threats. • Subsistence uses would continue; personal sport-hunted trophies allowed.

7. Turtle Proposals • The world’s most endangered vertebrates, with almost half categorized on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable. • High risk of extinction because of their life history strategy, including adult longevity, late maturity, limited annual reproductive output, and high juvenile/egg mortality. • Harvest as well as habitat degradation and loss are their greatest threats.

8. Turtle Proposals Credit Ron Brooks Co-Chair of OMSTARRT (Ontario Multi-Species of Turtles At Risk Recovery Team)

9. Turtle Proposals • Turtle life history traits leads to a high probability that at some time during their long lifespan, some hatchlings will survive to maturity. • Keys to the success of this reproductive strategy include adults attaining sexual maturity and a large number of eggs being produced. • Removal of adults and eggs makes turtles particularly vulnerable to overexploitation by humans and can result in population collapse.

10. Turtle Proposals • Trade in turtle species has followed a boom and bust pattern in which exploitation and trade shift from one species to another when a species becomes: 1) so depleted that it is no longer commercially exploitable; or 2) the subject of stricter regulation, so that trade shifts to less regulated species. U.S. Snapping Turtles SE AsianSpecies Effects of CITES Actions: Exports by Specimen U.S. Softshells IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group; CITES CoP15

11. Turtle Proposals • Follows outcomes of 2 recent specialist regional workshops in Singapore and the USA for the Asian and North American species, respectively. • The proposals continue efforts of the Phnom Penh and Kunming workshops on Asian tortoises and freshwater turtles that began in previous AC, SC, & CoPs, including Res. Conf. 11.9 (Rev. CoP13).

12. Asian Soft-shell Turtles -selected species in the Family Trionychidae- • Include the following species in Appendix II: • Aspideretes leithii, Dogania subplana, Nilssonia formosa, Palea steindachneri, Pelodiscus axenaria, P. maackii, P. parviformis, and Rafetus swinhoei • Qualify under Annex 2a, paragraph B of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15): • Trade appears to be shifting to these species • Life history traits make them vulnerable to overexploitation • Boom and bust turtle trade increases their vulnerability • TransferChitra chitra* and Chitra vandijki+to Appendix I: • Qualify under Annex 1, paragraphs A,+ B,* and C*+ of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15): • Restricted distribution • Marked wild population decline • IUCN Critically Endangered or draft Critically Endangered status • Targeted wild harvest (adults and eggs for food pet trade); incidental take (by-catch) • Predictable nesting habits; accessible nests (river banks) • Habitat alteration to build water reservoirs has inundated nests, decreased suitable nesting sites, and increased water turbidity hindering prey capture (sit & wait predators)

13. Asian Hard-shell Turtles-selected taxa of the Family Geoemydidae • Include the following in Appendix II: • Cyclemys spp., Geoemyda japonica, G. spengleri, Hardellathurjii, Mauremys japonica, M. nigricans, Melanochelystrijuga, Moreniapetersi, Sacaliabealei, S. quadriocellata, and Vijayachelyssilvatica. • Qualifies under Annex 2a, paragraph B of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15) • Trade appears to be shifting to these species • Life history traits make them vulnerable to overexploitation • Boom and bust turtle trade increases their vulnerability • Establish a zero quota on wild specimens for commercialpurposes for the following Appendix II taxa: • Batagurborneoensis, B. trivittata, Cuoraaurocapitata, C. flavomarginata, C. galbinifrons, C. mccordi, C. mouhotii, C. pani, C. trifasciata, C. yunnanensis, C. zhoui, Heosemysannandalii, H. depressa, Mauremysannamensis, and Orlitiaborneensis. • Most are critically endangered ; some are few in the wild • Zero quota will better protect wild populations

14. Asian Turtles Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • Overarching conservation protection from the boom and bust nature of the turtle trade. • Maintenance of local turtle populations for the benefit of local people. • Family level listings facilitate enforcement (generic similarities). • Represents and strengthens cooperative range/consumer country relationships.

15. Roti-Island Snake- necked Turtle • Transfer to Appendix I • Qualifies under Annex 1, paragraphs A i), ii), v); B) iii), iv); and C) i) of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15): • Highly localized range; known from a limited number of shallow wetlands in Roti Island, Indonesia, and in Timor-Leste • Wild population and subpopulations are small, possibly extinct • Extremely restricted distribution and small population size contribute to high vulnerability to over-collection • International pet trade is considered the primary threat to this species and populations have diminished significantly due to wild collection

16. Roti-Island Snake-necked Turtle Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • Unless this species is properly managed and protected from the illegal trade, it faces likely extinction in the wild. • Illegal exports from range countries are apparently occurring. • Reptile exporters in Jakarta report the majority of the ongoing demand for specimens comes from hobbyists in western European countries, the USA and Japan.

17. Burmese Star Tortoise • Transfer to Appendix I • Qualifies under Annex 1, paragraphs A i),ii),v); B i), iii), iv); and C i) of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15): • Extremely restricted area of distribution and occurring at few locations • Most recent surveys (2006) indicate extremely small wild population and subpopulations, and possibly ecologically extinct in some locations • Extremely restricted distribution and small population size contribute to high vulnerability to over-collection • Prized for the international food market and pet trade since mid-1990s • Currently close to extirpation in the wild

18. Burmese Star Tortoise Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • The species is nearing ecological extinction and wild populations cannot sustain commercial trade. • Prized for its rarity and beauty, the commercial market is fueled by ongoing demand from the high-end pet trade, selling for about US$1,500/€1,200.

19. Big-headed Turtle • Transfer to Appendix I • Qualifies under Annex 1, paragraphs B i), iii), iv); and C i), ii), of Resolution Conf. 9.24 (Rev CoP15): • Habitat specialists found in un-polluted mountain (i.e. at high altitudes) streams within closed-canopy forested areas • Does not breed readily in captivity • Previously common in Chinese food markets, but now only low numbers of individuals are found in markets, indicating that wild populations have declined dramatically • Shift in trade (new market) – hatchlings are now commanding higher prices than adults due to their bright vivid colors - further removing reproductive potential for the species

20. Big-headed Turtle Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • Increased protection from the boom and bust nature of the turtle trade, especially given expanding nature of trade to hatchlings as well as adults. • Better maintenance of local turtle populations for the benefit of local people.

21. Diamondback Terrapin • Include in Appendix II • Qualifies under Annex 2a, paragraphs A and B of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15): • History of domestic use ended with Great Depression; however the species is now collected for use primarily as pets, being exported primarily to Asia • Incidental take as by-catch (drowning in crab pots) • Loss of salt marsh habitat due to coastal development • There has never been successful farming of this species

22. Blanding’s Turtle • Inclusion in Appendix II. • Qualifies under criteria A and B in Annex 2a of Resolution Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15): • Wild collection, primarily for pet trade • “Poster child” for vulnerability to exploitation (studies on Blanding’s led to identification of life history traits that emphasize turtles vulnerability) • High mobility and extensive seasonal movements between wetlands increase male and female susceptibility to the impacts of road mortality -- and facilitate collectors’ ability to harvest the animals for trade • International demand for this species continues to rise

23. Blanding’s Turtle • 2011 data show highest export ever – primarily to Hong Kong

24. Spotted Turtle • Include in Appendix II • Qualifies under Annex 2a, paragraphs A and B in of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15): • Wild collection for pet trade • Turtle life history traits that make them vulnerable to overexploitation • Vulnerable to mortality on roads and from agricultural machinery, habitat degradation, predation, and habitat invasion by non-native plant species

25. U.S. Native Turtles Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • Regulation of international trade would ensure that exports are not detrimental and would assist range countries in stemming illegal trade. • Inclusion in Appendix II will provide national-level support for individual state efforts to manage and conserve the species.

26. Oceanic Whitetip Shark • Include in Appendix II • Qualifies under Annex 2a, paragraph A of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15): • Intrinsic threat: Low-productivity species • Greatest threats: International fin trade and bycatch mortality (i.e., tuna/swordfish fisheries) • CoP15 FAO Expert Panel : Species met criteria for Appendix II • Once among the more abundant pelagic sharks, has undergone marked decline of 50-90%, and inferred declines based on CPUE, where data are deficient • Preferred species in high value fin market: US$45 to US$85 per kg

27. Oceanic WhitetipShark Benefits of CITES action and other considerations: • Ensure that trade is monitored globally. • Will help stop the significant and continuing declines driven by the international fin trade. • CITES-listing will complement countries’ efforts to enforce RFMO rules.

28. Ginseng Annotation • Amend annotation #3: Designates whole and sliced roots and parts of roots, excluding manufactured parts or derivatives such as powders, pills, extracts, tonics, teas and confectionery. • Annotation was last amended at CoP14 making it less clear whether the CITES listing covered manufactured products of ginseng roots • Proposal reverts back to Pre-CoP14 text and does not change the scope of the listing

29. Laguna Beach Live-forever & Santa Barbara Island Live-forever • Delete species from Appendix II • Both included in Appendix I in 1983 • PC9 (1999) Periodic Review of the Appendices by the CITES recommended transfer to Appendix II • Species transferred to Appendix II at CoP11 (2000) and CoP12 (2002), respectively

30. Laguna Beach Live-forever & Santa Barbara Island Live-forever • In accordance with precautionary measures in Annex 4 of Res. Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP15), a species downlisted to Appendix II should be monitored for at least two intervals between CoPs: • Monitoring since CoP11 and CoP12, respectively, indicate that trade is no longer a threat • No CITES-recorded trade in over 25 years • No evidence of illegal trade • No evidence of poaching from the wild • No look-alike concerns (onlyCITES-listed species in Crassulaceaefamily) • Therefore, the species can be deleted from Appendix II.

31. Thank you Rosemarie Gnam, Ph.D. Division of Scientific Authority U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 4401 North Fairfax Dr. Arlington, VA 22203 Rosemarie_Gnam@fws.gov 703-358-1708

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