27 March 2014: Fifteen experts convened to develop a Single Species Action Plan for the Pacific Loggerhead Turtle, agreeing that key threats to this species include bycatch in fisheries, entanglement and ingestion of marine debris.

The meeting, funded by the Australian Government, brought together government representatives and experts from Australia, Chile, Fiji, Ecuador, New Caledonia (France), Peru, and the US, as well as Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) Appointed Councillors and Secretariat, and Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP). The meeting took place in Brisbane, Australia, from 25-27 March.

A draft Action Plan, which describes actions to address the threats will be finalized in consultation with all range States, and will be presented to the 11th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CMS (CMS COP 11) in November 2014 for adoption. The Pacific Loggerhead Turtle is listed on Appendix I of both CMS and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and categorized as Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. [CMS News]