30 July 2014: The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) has celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the signing of the Siberian Crane Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This MoU was the first to be developed under the auspices of CMS.

The MoU was signed on 1 July 1993, and revised on 1 January 1999. Originally concentrating on the Western and Central populations of Siberian Cranes, which migrate between breeding grounds in Western Siberia and wintering sites in Iran and India, the scope of the Memorandum was expanded to include the larger Eastern Asian population, which winters around Poyang Lake, China, and accounts for 98% of the world population. Today, the Siberian Crane MoU has been signed by all 11 Range States: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan; as well as by the CMS Secretariat, the International Crane Foundation, the Wild Bird Society of Japan, Wetlands International and the Cracid and Crane Breeding and Conservation Centre.

The Signatories have adopted conservation plans for the Western, Central and Eastern Siberian Crane Flyways to reduce mortality in the remaining populations, to protect and manage their habitats and to enhance co-operation among the Range States and other concerned entities. The implementation of the conservation plans is reviewed at meetings of the Memorandum’s Signatories.

A report on the activities under the MoU will be presented at the 11th Conference of the Parties to the CMS, which will take place in Quito, Ecuador from 4-9 November 2014. [CMS News][Siberian Crane MoU website]