The 15th meeting of the Conference of Parties (CoP15) to the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) resulted in rejection of proposals by the United States to remove bobcats from CITES listing and to list polar bears as an Appendix I species, reports the Wildlife Management Institute. The meeting, held in Doha, Qatar, from March 13 to 25, 2010, focused on continued international cooperation in monitoring or limiting species trade. A Conference of the Parties is held every two or three years to review, discuss and negotiate changes in the management and control of international trade in the various wildlife species covered by the agreement. The bobcat and polar bear petitions were two of 42 species proposals debated during the conference, along with management of bluefin tuna, sharks, elephants, tigers and much more.

CITES is a multinational agreement that went into effect in 1975 to reduce the detrimental impacts of species by excessive international trade, potentially resulting in endangerment or extinction. The treaty manages species in three categories. Appendix I includes those species about which it is determined that any commercial trade could impact the survival of the species and, therefore, no trade is allowed. Noncommercial trade of Appendix I species is allowed if it does not jeopardize the species' survival in the wild. Appendix II includes species about which it is determined that commercial trade could be detrimental to species survival, so the trade is strictly controlled through export permits. And Appendix III includes native species listed by a country in order to receive additional assistance by parties to ensure that exports of native species are legal. There are approximately 5,000 animal species and 28,000 plant species protected by CITES.

The United States petitioned to remove bobcats from listing as an Appendix II species, claiming that its inclusion on the list was no longer warranted and that neither domestic nor international trade threatens bobcat populations. The petition was rejected in committee by a vote of 53 in support, 46 opposed and 15 abstentions. (CITES procedures require a two-thirds majority vote for any listing decision to be accepted). Bobcats have been listed on Appendix II since 1977, based largely on its similarity in appearance to other spotted cats. Close monitoring of bobcats has shown that the species is not threatened and that harvest and trade are well regulated. In addition, substantial effort has gone in to training importing countries, primarily within the European Union, to identify bobcats properly and differentiate between other potentially threatened species. The United States submitted the petition at the request of the states; similar petitions were rejected in the last two CITES conferences.

The United States also petitioned to have the polar bear listed under Appendix I, citing population levels that meet the biological criteria for listing and the potential for trade to compound the threats to the species. Polar bears were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2008, due to the loss of its preferred sea-ice habitat as a result of climate change. However, opponents of the listing under CITES have claimed that there is limited international trade in polar bears and the specie, therefore, does not meet the listing requirements. The petition failed by a vote of 48 in support, 62 opposed, and 11 abstentions.

"We strongly believe that, as a threatened species, polar bears and their parts should not be traded internationally, and we are disappointed that our proposed ban on commercial trade did not get the votes it needed to pass," stated the head of the U.S. delegation, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Tom Strickland. "At the same time, we are encouraged that there has been considerable dialogue among nations on dealing with the primary threat to polar bears, the melting of their arctic habitat due to climate change." (jas)