Magazine of the species survival Commission specialist Group - IUCN

specialist group exchange
with land use changes due to
agricultural intensification. The species
now occurs at very low densities and a
recent study has identified an emerging
potential threat to its long-term survival.
Following the discovery of
naturalised populations of the European
Hare (Lepus europaeus), the Irish Hare
Species Action Plan Steering Group
commissioned a review, funded by the
Northern Ireland Environment Agency
(NIEA), of the potential impact of the
invader on the native subspecies.
The paper, published in Biological
Invasions, suggests that European
Hares establish easily beyond their
native range and exhibit strong
competition for habitat space and food
resources with native species, including
non-lagomorphs. However, their effect
on similar species, such as the
Mountain Hare, can be even more
damaging. The Irish Hare represents an
evolutionarily unique lineage among the
mountain hares having been isolated
post-glacially for some 30,000–60,000
years. The discovery of interspecific
hybridization between invading
European and native Irish hares in the
wild in Ireland is, therefore, very
worrying. Moreover, the review warns
that disease, parasite transmission and
climate change may provide an edge to
the invading species at the expense of
the native.
A panel of Lagomorph SG members
provided a signed foreword to
accompany the paper recommending
immediate intervention. An urgent call
was issued for more research and for
the drafting of a European Hare Invasive
Species Action Plan (ISAP) and
Eradication Strategy. Invasive mammal
species have been successfully
removed from Ireland before and
immediate action is often the only
opportunity for cost-effective
eradication. Read more at
www.quercus.ac.uk.
Neil Reid
Contributor and member of Lagomorph
Specialist Group
Andrew Smith
Chair, Lagomorph Specialist Group
Medicinal Plant SG
Revised standards for sustainable
management of medicinal plants
The International Standard for
Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal
and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP),
developed by the Medicinal Plant
Specialist Group in collaboration with
the German Federal Agency for Nature
Conservation (BfN), TRAFFIC, and
WWF, has now merged with the
FairWild Standard in the recently
released version 2.0. A commitment to
join the two wild-collection standard
initiatives under the ownership and
management of the FairWild Foundation
was formalized in 2008 during the 4th
IUCN World Conservation Congress in
Barcelona.
FairWild Standard version 2.0
combines ecological, social, and
economic good practice principles for
sustainable wild collection of natural
ingredients for food, cosmetics, herbal
remedies and pharmaceuticals.
Globally, more than 400,000 tonnes
of medicinal and aromatic plants are
traded annually, with the great majority
of these species being harvested from
the wild. Out of an estimated 50,000–
70,000 plant species used medicinally
world-wide, around 15,000 are thought
to be threatened by over-exploitation
and habitat loss.
The revised FairWild Standard and
related performance indicators combine
all essential elements of the original
FairWild Standard, focused on fair
trade, and the International Standard for
Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal
and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP),
which focused on ecological
sustainability and applications to
traditional knowledge, access and
benefit sharing (ABS). Moreover, the
revised version incorporates the
lessons learned through practical
application of the Standard in the field.
The latest Standard was drawn up
following extensive consultations with
plant experts and representatives from
the global herbal products industry.
This year, 23 wild plant collection
companies are on track to becoming
FairWild certified.
The FairWild Standard is useful not
only for companies wishing to certify
their products as sustainably traded.
Earlier versions of the Standard are
already being used by Government
agencies in a number of countries as
the basis of their natural resource
management plans, thereby helping to
fulfil their commitments to the
Convention on Biological Diversity,
particularly those related to sustainable
use of biodiversity, good practices for
plant resource management, and
equitable distribution of benefits from
biodiversity resources.
Danna Leaman
Chair, Medicinal Plant Specialist Group
Otter SG
Standardizing post-mortem protocol
Biologists and veterinarians from across
Europe gathered in Denmark in
February at a workshop arranged by
the IUCN SSC Otter Specialist Group.
The workshop aimed to produce a
standardised post-mortem protocol,
Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra). © Hugh Jansmann
species 52 • 23