WWT and UNEP/AEWA Secretariat sign two Memoranda of Cooperation for the White-headed Duck and the Red-breasted Goose

The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) and the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat have recently signed two Memoranda of Cooperation (MoC) for the White-headed Duck (Oxyura leucocephala) and the Red-breasted Goose (Branta ruficollis).

The aim of these MoCs is to ensure complete and effective implementation of the SSAPs for both species. The UNEP/AEWA Secretariat and WWT intend to build on their good collaboration in the past to achieve an improved conservation status for both species. The main activities as laid down in these MoCs will focus on the AEWA Species Working Groups for the White-headed Duck and the Red-breasted Goose. WWT will convene and service these Working Groups and will provide a part-time post of Coordinator for each Group. The Coordinators will work in close consultation with the Chairs of the Working Groups and the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat and will fully support the Groups’ operations. These AEWA Species Working Groups will facilitate the implementation of both Single Species Action Plans (SSAPs) and will represent the international coordination mechanism for their implementation.

The need for closer cooperation was raised by the poor conservation status of both birds. The White-headed Duck and the Red-breasted Goose are globally threatened species (IUCN Red List category: Endangered (EN)) and are listed on the AEWA Table 1 in Column A (White-headed Duck: categories 1a, b and c; Red-breasted Goose: categories 1a, b and 3a & c). Currently, their wild populations consist of not more than 7,900-13,100 White-headed Ducks and 44,000 birds for the Red-breasted Goose.

Since 2005, the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat has supported the operations of international expert working groups for several species that have been subject to SSAPs. Amongst them was the Red-breasted Goose International Working Group, which was jointly supported by The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT), Vogelbescherming Netherlands (VBN) and the UNEP/AEWA Secretariat. This informal working group will be the foundation for the new coordination mechanism and will be transferred into the AEWA Species Working Group, for the Red-breasted Goose.

The Species Action Plan for the Red-breasted Goose from 1995 is currently being revised by BirdLife International and WWT and will soon be proposed for endorsement under the auspices of AEWA and the EC.

AEWA is looking forward to a fruitful cooperation with WWT with the ultimate aim of achieving an improved conservation status for both species.

For more information please visit:

• Single Species Action Plan for the White-headed Duck (PDF)

Red-breasted Goose International Working Group (informal expert group)