Yahoo – AFP,
October 28, 2017
Lions,
chimpanzees, giraffes, leopards and a wide variety of sharks received added
protection at a UN wildlife conference in the Philippines, organisers said
Saturday.
Some 34
endangered species were selected to receive heightened conservation efforts at
the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) conference that just concluded in
Manila.
Protecting
migratory species poses particular difficulties since they cross borders,
including possibly moving to countries with less stringent wildlife protection
systems said Bradnee Chambers, CMS executive secretary.
"If
the species is moving around all of these countries, everybody has to pitch
in," he said at the end of the week-long conference.
Lions,
leopards and chimpanzees were singled out as needing more conservation work.
The chimpanzee in particular is at risk as their numbers have dropped in recent
years due to habitat loss, the organisers said.
The
giraffe, which is in decline throughout Africa with fewer than 90,000 animals
left in the wild, was also listed.
All four of
these African mammals were approved by a "wide majority" for
additional protection measures, a CMS statement noted.
Other
animals that were listed were three species of shark including the whale shark,
the largest fish in the world. Host country the Philippines had lobbied for
this creature, which has become a major tourist attraction.
More than
120 states are party to the CMS, but this does not include China and many other
Asian countries.
"We're
trying to work to bring China onboard as a member of the convention. We have been
engaging them and they are actually doing quite a bit," Chambers told
reporters.
"What
it required is positive engagement with the country to see how to find
solutions instead of just bashing the country and looking at the negative
side."
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