21 March 2012: The 26th meeting of the Animals Committee (AC 26) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) moved from Geneva, Switzerland, to continue its work in Dublin, Ireland, where the Committee will convene together with the CITES Plants Committee (PC).

AC 26, which convened from 15-20 March 2012, consisted of meetings of the AC and its working groups. Participants discussed, inter alia, periodic review of animal species included in appendices, evaluation of the review of significant trade, criteria for the inclusion of species in Appendices I and II, and aquatic species.

The Committee recommended export quotas for: seahorses from Southeast Asia; giant clams from the Pacific; sturgeons from the Caspian Sea; and live dolphins from Solomon Islands. Participants further agreed on a list of shark species believed to require additional action to enhance their conservation and management. The AC also heard: Germany’s draft proposal to include the porbeagle shark in Appendix II; and Senegal’s draft proposal to transfer the West African manatee from Appendix II to Appendix I.

AC 26 also reviewed international trade in Asian snakes, tortoises and freshwater turtles, endemic reptiles and amphibians from Madagascar, scorpions and African birds, noting serious concern regarding the trade from certain African countries in grey-crowned and blackcrowned cranes.

CITES Secretary-General John Scanlon underscored the importance for CITES to provide its parties with the best available science and advice upon which to base their decisions at the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16), scheduled to take place in Bangkok, Thailand, in March 2013.

AC 26 will be followed by three scientific meetings to be held in Dublin, Ireland: a joint session of AC 26 and the 20th meeting of the PC (PC 20), the fifth meeting of the Chairs of the Scientific Advisory Bodies of the Biodiversity-related Conventions (CSAB), and PC 20. [CITES Press Release] [IISD RS Coverage]