An announcement, detailing the suspension of trade in Black Crowned Cranes from Guinea, Sudan and South Sudan and trade in Grey Crowned Cranes from Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, has just come out of the CITES Conference of the Parties 16 currently underway in Bangkok, Thailand.
As Kerryn Morrison, ICF’s African Crane Conservation Program Manager, and I drove across the border from Uganda, I was thrilled to experience Rwanda for the first time. Rwanda is the 20th Africa country I have worked in for ICF, and I take joy in learning about the unique cultural, political, and ecological characteristics of each country I visit. Rwanda is no exception.
ICF President Dr. Rich Beilfuss recently returned from a three-week field visit to advance ICF’s Africa Program in three important “crane countries” — Uganda, Rwanda, and Zambia. Following are his field notes from Uganda, detailing the community-based efforts to protect the remaining Grey Crowned Cranes and their habitats in this country.
In Africa, trade in cranes is a major threat to all four resident crane species: Grey Crowned, Black Crowned, Blue and Wattled Cranes (above). The African Crane Trade Project was initiated in 2006 by ICF and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), a leading conservation organization in South Africa and co-leader of the ICF/EWT Partnership for [...]
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