December 5-6, 2024
The Americas Flyways Framework (AFF) was developed under the aegis of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (the Convention on Migratory Species, or CMS) to support governments, non-profits, research institutions, corporations, and citizens in conserving migratory birds and their habitats across the Western Hemisphere. The Framework covers all migratory birds in the Americas, including austral migrants, with a special focus on endangered migratory species and declining species.
The Framework and a Task Force to support its implementation were launched at the 11th meeting of the CMS Conference of the Parties (COP11) in Ecuador in 2014. The Task Force aims to strengthen cooperation among countries across the Americas, focusing on concerted conservation actions for migratory bird species, especially to fill gaps and enact conservation on the ground. The first in-person meeting of the Task Force was held in Florianópolis, Brazil, in July 2018 to prioritize actions within the AFF Action Plan approved for 2018-2023.
The second meeting of the AFF Task Force was recently held in Florianópolis during 5-6 December 2024, hosted by the Brazilian Government, bringing together government agencies, NGOs, and financial institutions from throughout the Americas. Manomet Conservation Sciences was represented by Rob Clay (Vice President, Flyways), Juliana Bosi de Almeida (Managing Director, Flyways), and Diego Luna Quevedo (Senior Specialist, Policy and Governance).
Left: Participants of the Second Meeting of the Americas Flyways Task Force in Brazil. Right: Manomet’s delegation included Diego Luna Quevedo (Senior Specialist Policy and Governance), Juliana Bosi (Managing Director of Flyways), and Rob Clay (Vice President of Flyways and Director of the WHSRN Executive Office). Photos: Courtesy.
During two days of engaging discussions, participants reviewed implementation of the Framework, agreed updates and revisions, identified strategic stakeholders, and prioritized next steps in the lead-up to CMS COP15 to be held in Brazil in 2026. Presentations by countries and observer organizations highlighted successful models, showcased potential funding opportunities, and proposed collaborative initiatives to amplify resources and engagement, with the goal of ensuring that the Framework’s implementation be effective, sustainable and well-supported.
Leading the discussion on potential candidate species for listing under the CMS Appendices1, Rob Clay highlighted the recent uplisting of 16 shorebird species in the Americas to globally threatened or near-threatened status on the IUCN Red List of 16 shorebird species in the Americas, and noted “14 feature for the first time as species of global conservation concern, signaling the need for urgent, coordinated conservation action throughout their ranges to reverse the declines and restore populations”. Earlier this year, at COP13, the globally Vulnerable Magellanic Plover (Pluvianellus socialis) was listed on CMS Appendix I, as a result of a collaboration between the governments of Chile and Argentina, Manomet Conservation Sciences, and local partners Asociación Ambiente Sur and Centro de Rehabilitación de Aves Leñadura. These same organizations are now spearheading the development of a binational action plan to recover the species.
A pair of Magellanic Plovers. Photo: by Dubi Shapiro
Diego Luna Quevedo, Specialist in Policy and Governance at Manomet Conservation Sciences, noted that “CMS provides a framework for international cooperation in the conservation of migratory species that cross national borders, such as shorebirds, which, with their long migrations, require coordinating local and national action with international cooperation. This is essential to effectively address conservation needs, as the actions of a single country can impact species at the scale of their annual life cycle. Amid the severe biodiversity crisis we are experiencing, countries must move forward in adopting measures to protect migratory species and their habitats, as well as collaborate in research and monitoring. This includes the creation of agreements that can range from binding treaties to less formal memoranda.”
The meeting was made possible thanks to the contributions of the Government of Brazil, Manomet Conservation Sciences and a financial contribution from the Government of the United Kingdom to the CMS Secretariat.
For more information about CMS and the Americas Flyways Task Force, contact Rob Clay, Vice President of Flyways.
Cover Photo: Magellanic Plover. Photo: Neil Bowman / Getty Images.
