Photo by Ali Abdul Rahman
More than 130 governments concluded a week of negotiations in Campo Grande, Brazil on 29 March, agreeing to extend new or upgraded international protections to 40 migratory species at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS CoP15). The marine outcomes are among the most substantial in the convention’s 47-year history, with full protection now mandated for all three thresher shark species and both the great and scalloped hammerhead.
The scale of the crisis facing migratory species was set out starkly at the outset. Simone Niedermüller, a marine expert at WWF Mediterranean who attended on behalf of WWF, cited the latest CMS status report: “Almost half of all listed migratory species populations are in decline globally. One in four species is even acutely threatened – and among migratory fish, that figure rises to a staggering 97%.”
Shark listings
The most consequential marine outcomes were a series of Appendix I listings for sharks — the highest level of protection under the Convention, requiring signatory governments to implement national prohibitions on catch. All three thresher shark species (pelagic, bigeye and common), proposed by Panama, were listed on Appendix I. Pelagic threshers are classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List; bigeye and common threshers as Vulnerable. Both the scalloped hammerhead and great hammerhead, proposed by Ecuador, were also listed on Appendix I – both are Critically Endangered, with populations decimated by overfishing, bycatch and the international fin trade.
Dana Tricarico of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Global Shark Conservation Team said: “Iconic ocean wanderers like large hammerheads and thresher sharks, that are already assessed by the IUCN as threatened with extinction, should be fully protected – and these CMS Appendix I listings are an important recognition that this should happen now. These listings recognise that slow-growing endangered shark species should be treated like other marine wildlife such as sea turtles or dolphins – but success will depend on how quickly and effectively countries implement these new obligations at a national level.”
The Patagonian narrownose smoothhound, one of the most heavily landed sharks in Argentina and Uruguay, with population declines exceeding 80% over three generations, was listed on Appendix II, promoting coordinated regional management across its Southwest Atlantic range. Juan Martin Cuevas, WCS’s Shark and Ray coordinator in Argentina, said: “This species supports small-scale coastal fisheries, where they are caught both intentionally and as bycatch. But their populations, and the communities that depend on them, are increasingly at risk without coordinated management.”
Eels, rays and broader marine outcomes
New transboundary action plans were adopted for the critically endangered European eel and the tope shark — two species for which extinction is no longer a distant prospect. Concerted action programmes were advanced for sand tiger sharks and manta rays, with the manta ray programme co-proposed by WCS. WWF Mediterranean and the Angel Shark Project used the conference to launch a new toolkit for angel shark conservation, designed to standardise approaches and deepen transboundary collaboration for a species whose range crosses multiple national borders.
A decision with far-reaching implications for marine spatial planning requires that Important Shark and Ray Areas (ISRAs), Important Marine Mammal Areas, Important Marine Turtle Areas and Key Biodiversity Areas must now be incorporated by parties into their national biodiversity strategies, spatial planning processes and reporting obligations. The same decision calls for strengthened data sharing between Regional Fisheries Management Organisations — a long-standing gap in the governance of migratory marine species. A new Regional Action Plan for Amazonian migratory catfish was also adopted, and new scientific findings suggest that hundreds of freshwater fish species may qualify for future CMS protection.
Niedermüller added: “Marine migratory species require urgent, coordinated, transboundary and science-based action. By reinforcing commitments on bycatch reduction, mitigating impacts of offshore energy, tackling marine pollution, and safeguarding critical flyways and migration corridors, the decisions emerging from this CMS CoP15 provide a crucial boost to marine conservation efforts.”
Implementation now the test
CMS Executive Secretary Amy Fraenkel said: “We came to Campo Grande knowing that the populations of half the species protected under this treaty are in decline. We leave with stronger protections and more ambitious plans but the species themselves are not waiting for our next meeting. Implementation has to begin tomorrow. Our duty now is to close the distance between what we’ve agreed and what happens on the ground for these animals.”
Susan Liberman, Vice President for International Policy at WCS, said: “The decisions adopted here reflect the power of science-based policy and international cooperation. Now, governments must act on these commitments to secure real conservation outcomes on the ground and in the water.”
CoP15 sets the stage for the UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD CoP17), scheduled for October next year, where the commitments made in Campo Grande will be measured against the targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The next CMS Conference of the Parties is expected in 2029 in Bonn, Germany, marking 50 years since the Convention was signed.