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facilities and cosls of mainlaining and fecding breeding animals and tho younS bcing reared for commercial Foduction. N€e Gulna ..@tlllel CeodJ&r rou.arn .., .t Mdrlrnd Holdlngs Ptt, Ltd., L.., Prpu N.r Gulno. Snc.€s{nl slsLlnrble u$ rcqulr6 rdequ.te sw€ys oalh. Flld popul.llm,..plr.lL.tlm, rnd htrshndrt tachnlque (Photo br B,Vcrnd), b€(weon lhe heallh of wild populations and the abilily to obiain rcaring sbck. By paying local p€ople for thc collcction of young crocodiles (e.g., Papua New Guinea) ranching also links crocodilian consorvalion wilh widcsprcad economic benefits. However, ranching progams based on the collection of cggs from tho wild are more difficult to link dte.tly !o economic benefits for rural communirics. Thc collecrion of eggs from ncsts is a delicate matter and if not done propcrly, results in the death of ahc embryo. For this reason, egg-harvest ranching progmms (e.9., Zimbabwe) are t)?ically done by ranch penonnel, limiting lho potcntial dircct benefits to local communilies. Farming, which refers [o thc closed,cycle breeding of crocodilians in captiviry. is another form of crocodilian urilization. Adult breeding dnimals are mainlaincd in captivily, eggs laid by fie capdve females arc collcctcd ard incubated anificially, and the young arc rcarcd to slaughtering <strong>size</strong>. The breeding of animals in captivity. and husbandry techniques l.hat maximize growth rates, have reccivcd considerable attention a$ociaFd wifi the gmwlh ofth€ crocodilian fanning industry. Farming offcrs a numb€r of advanlagcs from a commercial shndpoint, including the ability to exploit CITES Appendix I spccics (see I np I e iE ntat io n of s u s tai M b ]c y i e ld nana I ene nt,lrloit). Also. farming permits more manipulation of tho stock ppulalion. Selective brceding can bc donc !o improve the genetic qualily of lhe offsp.ing. Furtlrcrmorc, bc.ause eggs can be collected carly during the incubation Brriod, incubalion iechniques can be applied !o control the sex of thc offspring (by conEolling temperalure). However, because farming isolalcs the management tiom be wild populations, these t)'pes of programs usually havc no direct conservadon b€nefits. At worst.lhc collection ofanimals from the wild to slock farms rcsults in a drain on wild populalions (Hunon 1989a, King elal. 1990, Kjng and Cenab 1990). Farrning can be used to the bencfit of wild crocodilian populalions if thc farms are requircd 10 relms€ a cortain fracdon of thc produclion back inlo thc wild (e.g., in Colombia), bul this still do€s noi foslcr lhc important economic dependcncc on the maintenance of heal&y wild populations. Farming also requircs a large investment the construction ol lhc physical Implementation of Sustainable Yield Management Programs The developmenl of commercial uiilization progmms must comply wirh thc laws of the counFy whero the activity is t€ing undertal(en, Thc nalional management audrorities rcgulale the dcvclopmcnt of SYU Fojects. However, most SYU programs involvo inlcmadonal tsade in raw skins, tanned hides, or products manufacturcd from the hides. This intemational aade is impacted by CITES, lhc Convcntion on Intemational Tmde in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. CITES regulations, with certain exceptions, only pcrmit commercial rrade for spccics listcd in Appendi\ II. Species listed in lhe more restrictive App€ndix I are not allowed to be Eaded prirnarily for commercd purposcs. However, commercial tmdc ofAppendix I species is permitted from farms. Undcr thc CITES Anicle VII.4 (as subsoquently clarificd in Rcs. Conf. 2.12), App€ndix I species propagated in captivity are lcatcd under rhe provisions of Appcndix II (subject ro certification by &e nunagement authority of lhe counlry whcrc the propagation wai coducted, Anicle VII.s). The first commercial farm for an Appendix I speciss must also be approved by a full vote of tie CITES Parties. Olhcr plans involving $e inlernational trade of commercially exploited sp€cies requirc that the species in question bc lislcd in Appendix lI, and for crocodilians this includes all nnching and cropping programs. Species involved in rhese programs can bc divided inlo two categories, those that werc never listed on Appcndix | (Cainan crccodilus, Crocodlus novoeguineae,a C. joh^rdnr, and species thar were lis@d on App€ndix I and subsequenlly tsansfened to Appendix II either for the enlirc srf'cles (AlLigator rirsissr;a/ienrir) or on a counlry-by-counEy basis (Crocodylus niloricus, C, porosus). Sincc 1976, the addition of species l,o Appndix I and tho tmnsfcr of spccics from Appendix I to Appendix II have been pursuant io CITES regulations rcfeftd ro as the "Beme Crileria" Skhnlng srltFlt€r craodllG durln8. gove.nnentdmonshltoh nd rrrhiry(our$ ror vlll.gcE q tte S.pl* Rlyer, PtPu. N€w Guh.., Slze llmlrs sntrol hrrvEr o, $4td c.Ndlt€s l. PTur N€ycrtN.
(Res. Cont 1.1 and 1.2). This requires rhar Foposals by though the development of SYu proje.ts is of considerablc produccr nations to have their populations of Appendix I importance for a numb€r of crocoidilians, and will take on an crocodilians transferred to App€ndix lI bo bas€d on scienrific increasingly larger role in years to come, significandy more evidenc€ fiar the populations can suslain commercial utilizarion, emphasis needs !o be placed now oo the imDlemenhrion of including results of surveys indicating population recovery. Tho recovcry prograrns for the truly endangered crocodilians for only Appendix I populations dut were transfened !o Appendix II which commercial utilization is nor an immediaie option and under Res. Coni 1.2 wert thos{ oI A igaktr mi$itsippiensi! for some never will be. (Jnitcd Stales) and Crd.rdlupolo.rl{r (Australja). Thc implementation of SYU prognms for Euly enalangered Many countries found it difficult ro meei ihe requiftments of splecies, such as lhe Orinoco crocodile, would be viewed as a the Beme Criteria, and since 1976 two CITES resolulions have risky venture on econornic grounds because oflhe unlikelihood b€en passed facililating the Eansfer of Appendix I species |o of d|eir approval by the CITES Parties. From a conscrvation App€ndix II. The first penained !o nations wilh devcloping or vie\r?oint, the riskofprograrn abuses lesding !o overexploitation exisling SYU conse.vation prograns based on mnching (Rcs. far outweigh the poiential benefits rha! would accrue from such Conf. 3. l5). In order to qualify foran Appendix II classificalion prognms at present. For these species, the first stop is to under Res. Conf. 3. 15, the nation's management aurhoriry was implement management programs based on prote.tion and requircd lio submit a proposal describing tho pmgram and nalural or assisrcd population recovery, Once rsovery is showing how i[ would have frsitive conservation bcnefits for underway lhen lhe managemeni prognm could be amcnded tcr wild populations. In praclice this has requir€d tho country !o , incorporate SYU. have a well-develof,ed management prograrn in placo. Today, Of fie 9l papers dlat have becn published in $e Prcceedings countries where populations were lransferred to App€ndix II oflhe 9th and 10dr CSG meetings, a conservativ estimare of48 under Res- Conf. 3.15 arc Botswana, Malawi, Mozimbique, (53%) deal dnecdy wilh opcmting or planned SYU programs, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (C. nilrdcm). whereas only l0 (11%) concem one of the seven mosr gndangcrcd crocodilians (see b€low). Much ofthe funding thar has In 1985, anotheresolution (Res. Conf. 5.21) was passed allowing the temporary lransfcr of a population to Appendix II been available in Ecent yeais for crocodilian conservation hal under an annual quola system. The rcsolution was based on the comc ftom the reptile leather industry and has been used Iisling of cenain laxa in Appendix I "rhar either never met the principally to fund surveys or help implement maragement Beme Criteria for inclusion or havo rccovered since their programs oriented towards SYLI. Considembl effo( has gone inclusion," but for which rccovery cannot be shown bec:lusc into survey work for species such as CrccadJlur niloticus, sl-alus was not determined when included in lhe appendix. This CrocodJlus porost.s, Cainan crccodilus, utd Coittun tacarc, rcsolution was adopted as a temporary mechanism forcoun! ies whereas specie such as ?o mistonu sc hlegelii and Oocodylus to begin SYU programs while developing protosals for full .lidn4nJ/Jremain vinually unknown. At present only minimal transfer 10 Appendix II via Res. Conf. 1.2 or Rcs. Conf. 3.15. funding has been available for conservation projects p€rraining Quolas undcr Res. Conf. 5.21 were originally designed ro have to the sevon spccics mosr in need. The funding that has been a lime limia of four years, but in practice this limir has been available for work wilh t}lesc sprccies has come primarily from extended for a number of countries, Nadons that presendy intemadonal conservation organizations such as World Wildlife Fund-U.S., the World Wide Fund for Nature-International, (1991) havc Res. Cont 5.21 quotas include Elhiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Somalia, Sudan, and Tanzania (C.,ildticnr), and and Wildlife Conservadon Intemational (New Yo* Zoological Indonesia (C. prrorrs). Socicty). The informalion compiled in this acrion plan has permiued Sustainable Yield Utilization Projects versus an evaluation of the lop species in lerms of conservation Non-commercial Recovery Programs: Setting priority. The seven sp€cies given the hiShesl priority are (in Priorities order of descending pnority). CrocodJlus siawnsis, C. The principal goal mindore^sis, Aqigotar of the SSC Aclion Plans sinensis, CrocodJlus rhonbifet, is to sp€cify rhe Tomistona schlcqelii, actions needed to ensure that threalenod Crocodrlus intenudius, afi Gayialis spccies suavive as s€lfsustaining memb€rs gangelicrs . Ah]€r secli,on summarizes thc conservadon problcms facing each of these species, lists of their ecosyslems. As has bccn described in the previous sections, two very some sprccifi conserva, differcn! approaches to tion acdons, and oudines crocodilian cons€rvation are in some general considcralions for the evidencc today, those fiat use commcrcial inccntives dcvclopmcnt and implementation of recovery programs. fid those that do not. The commcrcial baris of sustainable yicld ulilization prog'ams provides a powcrful lool for cons€rvation. but is not equally applicable ro all Conservation Programs: General species. Thedevelopmentof successful conservation programs Considerations basei on SYU requires the prescncc of a eries of checks and balances which togelher ensure thal the utilization does not Thc main Drust of this acdon plan addressesp€cies specific exce€d sustainable levels. This. in tum. necessitales fiai ihe conservation problcms. However, there arc broader questions program regulatrons can b€ adequalely enforccd. Furthermore, that must also b€ address€d that perhin to many, ifnot all, offie lo be acceptable to CITES rcgulations, SYU ranching and drearened species. These include issues such as training cropping prograns involving Appendix I specics mustdcmon, programs, scientific research, and habirat protection, but also strate a clear conservation b€nefit to wild DoDulalions. Al involve specific points which may require policy decisions
Page 1 and 2: Crocodiles An Action Plan for their
Page 3: Crocodiles An Action Plan for their
Page 6 and 7: Peru...............................
Page 8 and 9: Specialist Group, Florida Museum of
Page 11 and 12: Objectives and Organization of the
Page 13 and 14: Comnon clinan, Cairu' .'d.or'il!i,
Page 15: 3. Lcal residenLs. The cconomic val
Page 19 and 20: nanagemenr, and the fact thal croco
Page 21 and 22: Species-specifi c Conservation Prio
Page 23 and 24: Country Accounts Introduction This
Page 25 and 26: Slender-snouted crQcodile (C r o c
Page 27 and 28: of 20 was established for 1985- 198
Page 29 and 30: C-rocodllus cataphrdctus. C rocodll
Page 31 and 32: Slender-snouted crocodile (C ro c o
Page 33 and 34: (140 km surveyed), Sabatvcalana Riv
Page 35 and 36: Nife crocodile (Crocodylus t ilotic
Page 37 and 38: Dwarf crocodile (Os teolaemus tetra
Page 39 and 40: Country Ratitrg Survey Data: I-no s
Page 41 and 42: Wild Population Status: l-u*nown Ma
Page 43 and 44: populalion of Nile crocodiles was t
Page 45 and 46: a large-scale rescarch progam, whic
Page 47 and 48: Matragementand Conservation Prcgram
Page 49 and 50: (Chen 1990a). However, in Xuancheng
Page 51 and 52: Conlact: D. Basu, B. C. Choudhurv,
Page 53 and 54: sp€cics has also be€n reponedly
Page 55 and 56: km) (Whitakor lgsa). From thos€ d
Page 57 and 58: - Mugger Gharial pakistan 1982). Kl
Page 59 and 60: anch in Lae. In 1988, a lotal of I,
Page 61 and 62: crccodilc habitat in the Solomon ls
Page 63 and 64: Wild Population Status: 3-severely
Page 65 and 66: life Prot€ction Acf' and banned c
Page 67 and 68:
- Klemm and Navid I989) in BraTil,
Page 69 and 70:
N.0017-87). Ranching or cropping pr
Page 71 and 72:
Cainan in i\e La er Swamp, bul lhis
Page 73:
Dwafi cAiman ( P aleo suchus palpeb
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