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Flamingo Specialist Group
The Flamingo Specialist Group (FSG) is a global network of
flamingo specialists (both scientists and non-scientists)
concerned with the study, monitoring, management and
conservation of the world’s six flamingo species. Its role is to
actively promote flamingo research, conservation and
education worldwide by encouraging information exchange
and cooperation among these specialists. The group is
coordinated from the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge,
UK as part of the IUCN SSC/Wetlands International Waterbird
Network. FSG members include experts in both in-situ and
ex-situ flamingo conservation and a wide-range of related
fields, including breeding biology, infectious disease,
toxicology, movement tracking and data management. There
are currently 171 members, representing 138 organisations in
43 countries.
During 2013, the list serve continued to provide an active
channel of communication for members, with over 80
messages posted during the year concerning varied subjects
such as the ageing of flamingos, the 2013 Red List update,
botulism, breeding and ringing reports from around the world,
and many other subjects of concern to both in-situ and ex-situ
flamingo conservationists.
The next edition of the FSG Newsletter, Flamingo 19, has
been compiled and will be ready for printing in spring 2014.
Laurie Conrad, Catherine King and colleagues have been
busy organising the ‘Third International Flamingo Symposium’,
which will be held on 5–9 October 2014 at the Bahia Resort
and Hotel in San Diego, California. The symposium
presentations will cover a range of topics including basic
ecological studies, wild population accounts, and zoological
behaviour and husbandry studies. Workshops will focus on
improving collaborations and in-situ conservation. The
dedicated symposium website can be accessed here.
An FSG membership database was produced and all
contact details of FSG members were verified. The database
provides an easy method for identifying members in particular
Newly-ringed Greater Flamingo in Algeria. © Samraoui Boudjema
regions, countries and organisations, allows gaps in
membership to be identified, and provides an efficient
mechanism for keeping members’ details up-to-date. In 2014,
members will be surveyed to determine expertise and their
recommendations for the future of the FSG.
Thanks to the hard work of FSG member Paul Rose, the
FSG’s Facebook page is an active source of flamingo news
and chat. The page has over 1,000 followers and an average
of five posts every week.
Rebecca Lee
Chair, Flamingo Specialist Group
Freshwater Crab and Crayfish Specialist
Group (FCCSG)
Our aims are to foster the conservation of all freshwater crabs
(1,300 species) and crayfish (569 species) worldwide; to act as
the Red List Authority for these species; to update their IUCN
Red List species assessments, and to educate non-specialists
about all aspects of this taxonomic group. The FCCSG
currently consists of 25 members from 15 countries. Our
website can be accessed here.
We are currently updating a number of freshwater crab
conservation assessments. These include Adeleana chapmani
from Borneo, two species of Karstama from Bali, Achlidon
agrestis from Mexico, Spirocarcinus garthi and
Potamocarcinus darienensis from Panama, Hypolobocera
caputii from Ecuador and Peru, Valdivia haraldi from Brazil,
and four species of Potamon from Greece. The list of newlydescribed
species of freshwater crabs from Africa, the
Mediterranean, Central and South America, and Asia
continues to grow and these are all targeted for initial
conservation assessments and inclusion in The IUCN Red List.
We have completed distribution maps for all 298 species of
freshwater crabs found in the Neotropcial region, and
presented the initial findings at a conference in Costa Rica,
and the findings were published in Zookeys. The next step is to
get these species distribution maps vetted, and to make them
available on The IUCN Red List website. We served as
Evaluator for the global Red List assessments of over 800
species of freshwater shrimps.
Other initiatives include fostering the global Red List
assessments for the 75 species of anomuran freshwater crabs
(Aeglidae), and for the 500 species of Branchiopoda (fairy
shrimp, clam shrimp, tadpole shrimp and Cladocera). Both
groups include species facing immediate threats, and both
include species of economic and ecological importance. The
long-term goal is to expand the FCCSG to include these
freshwater crustacean
groups. We worked on the
initiation of SSC Strategic
Conservation Plans aimed
at conserving Critically
Endangered species of
crayfish in Tennessee,USA;
but this project is currently
on hold, pending new
research on the status of
Giri Putri Cave Crab (Karstama
balicus) from a Cave in Bali,
Indonesia. © Tony Whitten
54 IUCN species Annual Report 2013