The International Crane Foundation

The International Crane Foundation seeks to help safeguard Africa's cranes through community-based research and conservation programs that benefit both people and wildlife. Throughout the world, cranes serve as important symbols for conservation. When people become concerned about the fate of cranes, they can take concrete steps towards conserving the wetlands and grasslands that serve, in part, as crane habitat.

The conservation of cranes in Africa depends on gaining accurate information about the status and distribution of cranes across the continent, empowering local ecologists to develop pro-active conservation programs for cranes and their habitats, and engaging governments, agencies, NGOs, and local communities in the sustainable management of wetlands and their catchments for the benefit of people and wildlife. To achieve these goals, we bring together diverse groups of people, from government and village leaders to engineers, anthropologists, and restoration ecologists, in a common cause. We recognize that real conservation will only be achieved if it becomes a priority of the people living with the cranes and sharing their rich habitats. To this end, we view ourselves as facilitators for our African colleagues, assisting them as needed with technical and management support and helping empower them through access to the international community of scientists, conservationists, and donors. Our programs seek to provide support and training for key individuals who will become the future conservation leaders of Africa, to conduct cutting-edge research on wetland restoration and watershed management in an African context, and to build a network of colleagues across Africa who will guide ICF and our partners in creating uniquely African solutions to conservation challenges.

African Crane Trade Project - Mitigation Planning Workshop:

Four species of cranes are resident in Africa - Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum, Black Crowned Crane Balearica pavonina, Wattled Crane Grus carunculatus and Blue Crane Anthropoides paradisea. Due to an increasing number of rumours about the trade in cranes, confiscations of illegally kept cranes in South Africa and the findings from a study in Mali showing high levels of international trade and domestication of Black Crowned Cranes, the African Crane Trade Project was initiated in 2006 as a project under the International Crane Foundation / Endangered Wildlife Trust Partnership.

Preliminary investigations during 2006/2007 showed that all four cranes species were affected by the illegal removal of individuals and eggs from the wild for food, traditional use, domestication and illegal trade markets. In addition, the captive populations within the formal zoo associations were unsustainable and the CITES database indicated that large numbers of wild caught cranes were still being traded in.

A workshop, facilitated by CBSG Southern Africa, to present these findings and to develop a mitigation plan was held in Naivasha, Kenya from 8 - 11 October 2007. Twenty five participants from eight countries were present at the workshop and represented local communities, NGO's, universities, governments and zoos.

It was agreed that a proposal to upgrade at least the Black and Grey Crowned Cranes from Appendix II to Appendix I at the next CITES Conference of Parties meeting would be developed and promoted. Concurrently, a review of the current status of the cranes would be made and a proposal for a Vulnerable status for the Black and Grey Crowned Cranes proposed. Two motions would also be developed for the IUCN's World Conservation Congress to be held in 2008, including one on the crane trade and the other on the inconsistencies in CITES data.

The participants were divided into four working groups: supply, international demand, legislation, and research and conservation action. Within each of these groups, solutions and action steps were developed. The supply of cranes and local in situ issues need to address the key elements of poverty, cultural beliefs, the lack of awareness at a local level and the need for community empowerment. A review of current legislation to identify gaps and loopholes and the need for greater awareness of current local, regional and international legislation and policies were the key solutions to addressing the lack of adequate and weak legislation and law enforcement. In order to address the conservation and research project needs and responses to the trade issue, information on crane biology and ecology is required, networks for information exchange should be established and communities should be involved in research and conservation programmes. A full understanding of the extent and factors driving the international demand for cranes, the routes followed and mortality rates need to be obtained. Sustainable captive populations need to be developed and broader awareness created around the crane trade and its effects on wild populations.

By working together and involving many partners in the implementation of this plan, the extent of the removal of cranes from the wild and its subsequent impact on wild populations can be reduced. Additional measures will need to be implemented over time as the threat is more clearly understood and some of the factors addressed. Each mitigation measure implemented as a result of the workshop and those decided upon over time will contribute to an accumulated conservation action securing the future of cranes in the wild in Africa.

SUPPORT ICF

Protect the World's Cranes:

Whether you are an individual or a representative of a foundation or corporation, ICF offers several ways in which to support our mission of protecting the world's cranes and the fragile habitats on which they depend.

You can be confident that your donation will be put directly to use to support our mission. Eighty-seven percent of every dollar raised at ICF goes directly to conservation programs. ICF has been awarded four out of four stars for organizational efficiency by Charity Navigator, a national non-profit organization working to help contributors make intelligent giving decisions. The organization provides charitable givers with information on more than seventeen hundred charities and evaluates the financial health of each of these charities.

For further information: supportICF@savingcranes.org