Chapter V — International 



seal pups in Seal Island were scheduled to be done 

 early in 1996 to continue developing the database on 

 species that could be affected by the krill fishery. 

 Surveys of possible alternative monitoring sites also 

 were planned for 1995-1996. 



The Antarctic Pack-ice Seals Program 



As noted above, the ecosystem monitoring program 

 recommended by the Scientific Committee for the 

 Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources 

 included directed studies of crabeater seals in one or 

 more pack-ice areas. As noted in the Commission's 

 previous annual report, nothing was done until 1992 

 to initiate directed studies of crabeater seals, one of 

 the principal consumers of Antarctic krill. In 1992 

 the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research's 

 Group of Specialists on Seals outlined the basic 

 components of an international research program 

 necessary to assess the ecological importance of 

 crabeater seals and other pack-ice seals in the Antarc- 

 tic marine ecosystem. 



A general program prospectus was developed in 

 1993 and a five-year plan for implementing the 

 program was developed in 1994. A program planning 

 meeting was held at the U.S. National Marine Mam- 

 mal Laboratory in Seattle, Washington, on 7-9 June 

 1995. Twenty-six scientists from nine nations partici- 

 pated in the planning meeting. The participants 

 proposed that a circumpolar survey of seal distribution 

 and abundance in the Antarctic ice pack be carried out 

 during the 1998-1999 austral summer and estimated 

 the amount of ship and aircraft support that would be 

 required to conduct the survey. They also determined 

 the types of behavior, genetics, disease, diet, and 

 ecotoxicology studies that should be done to improve 

 understanding of the basic biology and ecology of 

 pack-ice seals. They formed four task groups to 

 coordinate collection, processing, and analysis of data. 



If implemented as proposed, the Antarctic Pack-ice 

 Seal Program would resolve many uncertainties 

 concerning the role of seals in the Antarctic marine 

 ecosystem and whether long-term, directed studies of 

 crabeater seals would be useful for detecting the 

 possible ecological effects of the krill fishery and 

 other human activities in Antarctica. In 1996 the 

 Marine Mammal Commission will continue to work 



with the National Marine Fisheries Service, the 

 National Science Foundation, and the Department of 

 State to try to find the financial and logistic support 

 necessary to implement the program. 



Convention on International Trade 



in Endangered Species 



of Wild Fauna and Flora 



The Convention on International Trade in Endan- 

 gered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) 

 provides an international framework for regulating 

 trade in animals and plants that are or may become 

 threatened with extinction. The Convention entered 

 into force in 1975 and has been signed by 130 parties. 

 During 1995 two additional nations became signatories 

 to the Convention; they are Belarus and Dominica. 

 Within the United States, the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service acts as the lead agency for Federal actions 

 carried out under the Convention. 



The Convention provides for three levels of trade 

 control. Depending on the extent to which a species 

 is endangered, it may be included in one of three 

 appendices to the Convention. Appendix I includes 

 those species considered to be threatened with extinc- 

 tion and that are or may be affected by trade. Appen- 

 dix II includes species that are not necessarily threat- 

 ened with extinction but could become so unless trade 

 in them is strictly controlled. Species may also be in- 

 cluded on Appendix II if they are so similar in appear- 

 ance to a protected species that the two could be 

 confused. Appendix III includes species that any 

 party identifies as being subject to regulation within 

 its jurisdiction for the purpose of preventing or re- 

 stricting exploitation and for which the party needs the 

 cooperation of other parties to control trade. Addi- 

 tions or deletions of species listed on Appendices I 

 and II require concurrence by two-thirds of the parties 

 voting on a listing proposal. Species may be placed 

 on Appendix III unilaterally by any party. 



Parties to the Convention meet every two-and-a- 

 half years to consider, among other things, additions 

 and deletions to the appendices. The next Conference 

 of Parties is scheduled for 9-20 June 1997 in Victoria 

 Falls, Zimbabwe. 



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