NEWS: We have a new picture of the state of reef sharks.
After nearly 400 reefs sampled across 58 nations, @globalfinprint global reef shark & ray survey is in. Results are a sobering reminder that we must act now. go.nature.com/2ONoOeo
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Why? Conservation of reef #sharks is crucial. They are vital predators keeping important coral reef ecosystems in balance. (below from Belize)
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There were bright spots in the surveys where @TheWCS works. Melanesia, including Papua New Guinea (video), Solomon Islands & Fiji in many spots. Among others. @wcsfiji@WCSPNG
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SW Indian Ocean is considered a global hotspot for shark and ray biodiversity. This kind of assessment should record a high number of species.
It's telling from the results: even in a global hotspot, abundance of sharks and rays is very low.
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We @WCSocean also work in areas worse hit by overfishing of reef sharks, survey shows. But even here areas of hope remain and these are a focus of our conservation work moving forward.
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The study also shows the importance of the locations where WCS works on shark conservation (Belize, Madagascar, PNG, etc.) to maintaining and rebuilding reef shark populations
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It shows what’s working, too. Namely, says WCS’s @LukeDavid301:
👉Strong protections
👉Well enforced MPAs
👉Removal of gear that catches large numbers of sharks (longlines and gillnets)
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Our @TheWCS team was proud to bring local knowledge in important study areas around the world to this process and co-author this important survey. go.nature.com/2ONoOeo
COMMENTARY: If we are to minimize species loss and collapse in ecosystem function, we must do all we can to support Indigenous Peoples’ rights & their efforts to protect their lands & waters, write WCS’s David Wilkie, @sslieberman, & @cyclonewatson. 1/10
Why? Decisions Indigenous Peoples have made over generations have done more to protect species and ecological systems than all the protected areas established and managed by individual countries combined. bit.ly/2SbAIAq
Even 135 yrs after Louis Pasteur successfully vaccinated against rabies, this preventable but deadly viral disease remains one of most neglected in developing world.
Its greatest burden falls on poor rural communities and especially on children in Africa & Asia. #WorldRabiesDay
Since rabid domestic dogs are the cause of 99% of global deaths from rabies in humans, dog vaccination, coupled with education and control of feral dog populations, is the key to fighting this devastating disease. 2/
Since rabies also severely affects endangered wildlife species such as the Ethiopian wolf and African wild dogs, vaccination of domestic dogs at the landscape level by veterinarians also contributes to the conservation of these unique animal species. 3/
Majority of emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic—they jump from wildlife to people. Key to addressing this: our interactions, exploitation, and destruction of nature.
NOW: Christian Walzer of @WcsHealth will be speaking at #NatureForLife Hub. Watch live on our Facebook.
At WCS, our policy recommends stopping all commercial trade in wildlife for human consumption (particularly of birds and mammals) and closing all such markets.
Also: we have to acknowledge that outbreaks are inevitable as the interfaces between wildlife and humans increase, primarily due to deforestation and agricultural expansion, as WCS's Christian Walzer wrote in @FrontiersIn yesterday. doi.org/10.3389/fvets.…#NatureForLife
Nature-based solutions can provide up to 30% percent of the action needed by 2030 to keep global temperature rise below 2°C. #NatureForLife#ClimateChange
Intact forests are estimated to absorb 1/4 of total global carbon pollution annually, but we're losing them far too rapidly. #NatureForLife