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CITES and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

CITES Project Profile

 

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew - UK CITES Scientific Authority (SA) for plants

In 1976 the Secretary of State for the Environment appointed the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, as the UK CITES Scientific Authority for Plants. In this capacity, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew:

  • provides independent scientific advice to the UK CITES Management Authority, the Department of the Environment, Food and the Rural Affairs (DEFRA), on applications for CITES permits and aspects of the European Union (EU) Regulations implementing CITES within (EU) Member States; 
  • carries out research into certain key plant groups affected, or that may become affected, by trade and CITES legislation; 
  • represents the UK at technical meetings including the CITES Plants Committee, Conference of the Parties and the opinions of the Scientific Review Group of the European Commission; and
  • works with enforcement authorities such as HM Revenue and Customs and the Police, on the inspection, holding and disposal of detained or seized CITES material.

CITES Trade Research

Staff at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, carry out research into wild plants in trade within the CITES Significant Trade Programme. This is the formal process to analyse the demand for Appendix II specimens to determine possible or potential detrimental trade. The programme is part funded by CITES, part from other sources.

Projects involve a review of the data on the international trade of the species concerned, an analysis of the level of trade in wild and artificially propagated plants, an assessment of the conservation status of the species concerned and a series of recommendations setting out the necessary action required to ensure trade is sustainable. Projects are undertaken as partnerships with the countries concerned. 

Support for CITES Plants Committee

The CITES Plants Committee is undertaking a review of selected plant species included in the CITES Appendices. The review, in which Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, staff are participating, is examining the present biological and trade status of these species and make recommendations re their future listing requirements. Range state co-operation is an important component of the process. 

Newsletter: "CITES News - Plants"

The Conventions and Policy Section produces a newsletter for the European Region of the CITES Plants Committee in co-operation with the Córdoba Botanic Gardens, the Spanish CITES Scientific Authority. The newsletter is available in English, French and Spanish and is free of charge.

CITES Checklists

The CITES Nomenclature Committee co-ordinates the production of standard CITES references for plants. The checklists are produced by using an international panel of experts on the plants concerned, and are adopted as standard references by the CITES CoP. To date Kew has been particularly involved in the preparation of:

CITES Orchid Checklists

To date four volumes of the CITES Orchid Checklist have been published. The text is trilingual, English, French and Spanish.

CITES Orchid Checklists 1-3. Volumes 1, 2 & 3 have been produced as one combined output available here in pdf format. Checklist 1 covers the genera Cattleya, Constantia, Cypripedium, Laelia, Pahiopedilum, Paraphalaenopsis, Phalaenopsis, Phragmipedium, Pleione, Sophronitis and Sophronitella. Checklist 2 covers Cymbidium, Dendrobium (selected sections), Disa, Dracula and Encyclia. Checklist 3 covers Aerangis, Angraecum, Ascocentrum, Bletilla, Brassavola, Calanthe, Catasetum, Miltonia, Miltonioides, Miltoniopsis, Renanthera, Renantherella, Rhynchostylis, Rossioglossum, Vanda and Vandopsis.

Download

CITES Orchid Checklist 4 (2006) is available here in pdf format and contains the genera Aerides, Coelogyne, Comparettia and Masdevallia.

Download

CITES Orchid Checklist 4 ( Acrobat .pdf file 814Kb)

CITES Cactaceae Checklist 2nd Edition. The second edition of this book was prepared by David Hunt, assisted by the International Organisation for Succulent Plant Study (IOS).  Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, 1999. The text is not available as a download. Work will begin on a third edition in 2007. When completed, the third edition will be available on the WEB.

CITES Bulb Checklist, Davis, A. P., McGough, H. N., Mathew, B. & Grey-Wilson, C. Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, 1999. Produced as a tool for the day-to-day implementation of CITES this book will be of equal value to botanists, horticulturists, growers, collectors and gardeners. It is a quick and easy reference to the accepted names of Cyclamen, Galanthus and Sternbergia, with identification keys, synonyms and information on distribution.

Download

CITES Bulb Checklist (Acrobat .pdf file 637Kb)

CITES Carnivorous Plants Checklist, Von Arx B., Schlauer, J. & Groves, M. Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, 2001. This checklist incorporates the largest collection of published names for Dionaea, Nepenthes and Sarracenia, the three carnivorous plant genera included in the CITES Appendices.

Download

CITES Carnivorous Plant Checklist (Acrobat .pdf file 415Kb)

CITES Aloe and Pachypodium Checklist, Eggli, U., Newton, L. E. & Rowley, G. D. Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, 2001. Following the format of previous checklists, there is an alphabetical listing of all names in current usage, an alphabetical listing by accepted name and an alphabetical listing by country of distribution. 

Download.

CITES Aloe and Pachypodium Checklist ( Acrobat .pdf file 587Kb)

CITES Checklists and User's Guides are available from the CITES section of kewbooks.com

CITES Capacity Building project

CITES User's Guides are supported by the UK CITES Management Authority Defra.The guides are an introduction to CITES and how it applies to the major plant groups regulated by the Convention. The guides are available as books with a CD-ROM, on the WEB and independently on CD-ROM. They are produced in English, French and Spanish. They include a Microsoft PowerPoint training presentation.

This resource is designed to target a wide a range of audiences. Without alteration the training presentation may be most suited to those with a specific, technical interest in the Convention such as CITES Management Authorities, Scientific Authorities, enforcement officers, scientists, members of specialist groups, botanic gardens staff and plant growers. However, it is hoped that with a little imagination you will be able to use these guides as a flexible resource and reference, adapting them to your specific needs, educating and informing a wider range of audiences about CITES.

Titles include:

CITES and Plants: A User's Guide

CITES and Slipper Orchids: A User's Guide

CITES and Succulents: A User's Guide

The CITES User's Guides are available from the CITES section of kewbooks.com  

 

CITES Bulb Trade Project

Distribution mapping for the genus Galanthus. Staff are working to produce species maps for the genus Galanthus (snowdrops). Distribution maps for 19 species will be used to help assess the impact of wild bulb collection, and to assist in ensuring that trade continues to be sustainable. 
 


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