Adding New Animals to Global Protection Lists

EU Position for the 15th CMS Meeting (23‑29 March 2026, Campogrande, Brazil)

The European Union will take a position at the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). The CMS is a UN treaty that protects migratory species worldwide; it entered into force on 1 November 1983 and the EU is a party to it.

What will be decided at the meeting?
The parties will adopt decisions that amend the two appendices of the Convention:

• Appendix I lists endangered species that must be protected.
• Appendix II lists species that need international agreements for their conservation.

Proposals on the table

• Many parties want to add a large number of species to Appendix I and Appendix II.
• One party (Uzbekistan) wants to remove Cervus elaphus yarkandensis from Appendix I while keeping it in Appendix II.

EU’s stance

• The EU supports all proposals to add species to the appendices, except the removal of Cervus elaphus yarkandensis. That removal will be considered only if new scientific information is provided.
• Adding the species does not require any change to EU law.
• The EU is not a range state for many of the proposed species, but it still supports their inclusion because it aligns with the EU’s commitment to biodiversity protection.

Species added to Appendix I (20 species)

1. Acinonyx jubatus (Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia)
2. Hyaena hyaena
3. Pteronura brasiliensis
4. Pterodroma baraui
5. Pterodroma cervicalis occulta
6. Pterodroma hasitata
7. Pterodroma madeira
8. Pterodroma magentae
9. Pterodroma incerta
10. Pseudobulweria macgillivrayi
11. Pseudobulweria aterrima
12. Pseudobulweria becki
13. Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus
14. Limosa haemastica
15. Tringa flavipes
16. Alopias pelagicus
17. Alopias superciliosus
18. Alopias vulpinus
19. Sphyrna lewini
20. Sphyrna mokarran

Species added to Appendix II (25 species)

1. Acinonyx jubatus (Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia)
2. Hyaena hyaena
3. Pteronura brasiliensis
4. Pterodroma leucoptera (Australia, New Caledonia)
5. Pterodroma brevipes
6. Pterodroma defilippiana
7. Pterodroma longirostris
8. Pterodroma cookii cookii
9. Pterodroma cookii orientalis
10. Pterodroma pycrofti
11. Pterodroma axillaris
12. Pterodroma neglecta juana
13. Pterodroma arminjoniana
14. Pterodroma alba
15. Pterodroma cervicalis cervicalis
16. Pterodroma externa
17. Pterodroma feae
18. Pterodroma deserta
19. Ardenna carneipes
20. Pseudobulweria rostrata
21. Bubo scandiacus
22. Sporophila iberaensis
23. Mustelus schmitti
24. Squatina guggenheim
25. Pseudoplatystoma corruscans

Legal basis
The decision is based on Article 192(1) (environmental protection) and Article 218(9) (positions on behalf of the Union) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

Outcome
The Council will adopt a decision that:

• Supports the addition of the listed species to Appendices I and II.
• Keeps the removal of Cervus elaphus yarkandensis conditional on further data.
• Requires no change to EU law.

The decision will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.