Notification 2015-010

Dear Madam/Sir, Reference is made to notification 2013-092 of 18 October 2013, which drew the attention of Parties towards the incorporation of objectives of the biodiversity-related conventions into revised National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans (NBSAPs) and other issues of relevance to NBSAP revision identified by the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). In this connection, as part of the first Arctic Biodiversity Congress, organized by the Arctic Council's Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF http://www.caff.is/) working group, a session on the Arctic Migratory Birds Initiative (AMBI) was held in Trondheim, Norway, on 4 December 2014. AMBI’s objective is to improve the conservation outcomes of arctic-breeding migratory birds throughout their life cycle (AMBI http://www.caff.is/arctic-migratory-birds-initiative-ambi). As such, AMBI is breaking new ground for the Arctic Council by actively engaging relevant observer and other non-arctic countries and organizations to help implement, within four flyway-based work plans, conservation actions that need to occur both inside and outside of the Arctic. The results and recommendations of the Arctic Biodiversity Congress (ABC http://www.arcticbiodiversity.is/congress), the findings and recommendations of the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (2013) (ABA report 2013 http://www.arcticbiodiversity.is/), the relevant mandates of recent meetings of the COP, including the Caring for Coasts initiative (paragraph 6 of decision XII/19) (http://www.cbd.int/doc/decisions/cop-12/cop-12-dec-19-en.doc), the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS http://www.cms.int/) , in particular COP Resolution 11.14 on the Programme of Work on Migratory Birds and Flyways 2014-2023 (http://www.cms.int/raptors/sites/default/files/document/Res_11_14_PoW_on_Migratory_Birds__Flyways_En.pdf), and the Ramsar Convention (http://www.ramsar.org/), as well as the plans of AMBI ( http://www.caff.is/arctic-migratory-birds-initiative-ambi) and the Global Flyways regional initiatives (The East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) and Site Network http://www.eaaflyway.net/; African – Eurasian Waterbird Agreement http://www.unep-aewa.org/; The Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network; http://www.whsrn.org/western-hemisphere-shorebird-reserve-network; Western/Central Asian Site Network for Siberian Cranes and Other Waterbirds http://www.cms.int/en/legalinstrument/siberian-crane; Circumpolar Seabird Group http://www.caff.is/seabirds-cbird), have reiterated the importance and urgency of taking a global approach to migratory species conservation. Accordingly, the three Conventions, with BirdLife International (http://www.birdlife.org/), Wetlands International (http://www.wetlands.org/; and maps of flyways for waterbirds at http://www.wetlands.org/Whatwedo/Flywaysforwaterbirds/tabid/772/Default.aspx) and CAFF have decided to jointly draw the attention of stakeholders and decision makers in range countries (which includes most nations in the world) to the critical importance of taking the full life cycle of migratory bird species into account when determining priority areas in need of protection and improved management and monitoring, and to invite Parties to send to the Secretariat (secretariat@cbd.int) updated information on relevant recent actions and plans to fill the conservation gaps, by 16 March 2015, using the attached template as appropriate. Such information would be used to solicit technical and, as appropriate, financial support for their implementation. In preparing their inputs, focal points to the CBD are encouraged to coordinate with their counterparts from the other Conventions. Parties to the CBD are in the process of, or have already revised their National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs). Parties are encouraged to include actions to conserve migratory bird species in the NBSAP implementation process in order to fill gaps in protection and management of critical sites and habitats for migratory bird along all flyways (Aichi Biodiversity Target 11), to take prompt action to address immediate threats to critical sites and habitats for migratory birds and restore key stopover and feeding sites and habitats (Aichi Biodiversity Target 15), reducing the direct threats to species, such as illegal killing, unsustainable hunting, bycatch, poisoning, power lines, wind farms and other infrastructure (Aichi Biodiversity Targets 6, 7, 8, 9), contributing to preventing the extinction of known threatened species and improving their conservation status (Aichi Biodiversity Target 12). The continued existence of these vulnerable migratory bird species rests in our collective hands. We urge the nations fortunate enough to host these migratory birds in their flyways to take the urgent steps needed to ensure their conservation. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: National Focal Points to the CBD, PoWPA Focal Points, relevant organizations