Implementing Appendix II listings for marine fishes: important considerations when making non-detriment findings

This document summarizes key advice for making non-detriment findings (NDFs) for marine fishes1 listed on CITES Appendix II2 . It highlights the importance of, where possible: (i) making NDFs before removing specimens from the wild; (ii) making NDFs at an appropriate geographic scale; (iii) considering all types of wild extraction, and all sources of mortality, across all life-stages; (iv) ensuring fisheries and trade management is effective (i.e. appropriate for the pressures, complied with and/or enforced); (v) considering costs / benefits of export quotas; and (vi) monitoring populations and exports as part of adaptive management. The document then summarizes key sources of information and suggests five steps that could be taken to improve NDFs for marine fishes. These include updating the NDF material on the CITES Virtual College, sharing information on NDFs among Parties, asking Regional Fisheries Bodies to coordinate scientific and technical advice, supporting a second NDF workshop, and preparation of a discussion paper from this workshop.

This document is intended to help Parties appreciate the context, challenges and resources for making NDFs for marine fishes listed on CITES Appendix II. Such understanding will help address Parties’ concerns about availability of data, challenges of implementing existing marine fish listings, and concerns about how to make NDFs for marine fishes (Vincent et al. 20143 ). This should, in turn, further help Parties understand the implementation aspects of the listing proposals for marine fishes at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

This document draws primarily from the report of the Fishes Working Group at the International Workshop on CITES Non-Detriment Findings4 (Cancun, Mexico, 2008) and NDF guidance for humphead wrasse (Cheilinus undulates, Sadovy et al. 20075 ), sharks (Mundy-Taylor et al. 20146 ) and seahorses (Hippocampus spp., Foster & Vincent 20167 ). It is, of course, up to CITES Parties to decide on how to make an NDF.

Foster, S.J. & A.C.J. Vincent (2016). IUCN. Implementing Appendix II listings for marine fishes: important considerations when making non-detriment findings. (English | French  | Spanish) Information Document for the 17th Meeting of the CITES Conference of the Parties. CoP17 Inf. 52. 10 pp.