The 13th Conference of Parties (COP) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) is going to be hosted by India at Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

13^th COP of CMS

• The theme of CMS COP13 in India is, “Migratory species connect the planet and we welcome them home.
• The CMS COP 13 logo is inspired by ‘Kolam’, a traditional artform from southern India.
• In the logo of CMS COP-13, Kolam art form is used to depict key migratory species in India like Amur falcon, humpback whale and marine turtles.
• The mascot for CMS COP13, “Gibi – The Great Indian Bustard” is a critically endangered species which has been accorded the highest protection status under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

About CMS

• CMS is an international treaty concluded under aegis of UN Environment Programme (UNEP), concerned with conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale.
• It is commonly abbreviated as Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) or the Bonn Convention.
• It aims to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species throughout their range.
• It was signed in 1979 in Bonn (hence the name), Germany and entered into force in 1983.
• Its headquarters are in Bonn, Germany.
• CMS is only global and UN-based intergovernmental organization established exclusively for conservation and management of terrestrial, aquatic and avian migratory species throughout their range.

Prospects for India

• As the host, India shall be designated the President for the next three years.
• India is Signatory to the CMS since 1983.
• India has been taking necessary actions to protect and conserve migratory marine species.
• Seven species that include Dugong, Whale Shark, Marine Turtle (two species), have been identified for preparation of Conservation and Recovery Action Plan.

Other facts

• The Indian sub-continent is also part of the major bird flyway network, i.e, the Central Asian Flyway (CAF) that covers areas between the Arctic and Indian Oceans, and covers at least 279 populations of 182 migratory water bird species, including 29 globally threatened species.
• India is home to several migratory species of wildlife including snow leopard, Amur falcons, bar headed Geese, black necked cranes, marine turtles, dugongs, humpbacked whales, etc.
• It has signed non legally binding MOU with CMS on the conservation and management of Siberian Cranes (1998), Marine Turtles (2007), Dugongs (2008) and Raptors (2016).

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