Newsletter # 41 - November 2022 The Mediterranean Wetlands Newsletter | | Wetlands are our ‘life insurance’ against the combined climate and biodiversity crises The MAR conference, led by Luc Hoffmann and the Tour du Valat, initiated the international dynamics in favor of wetlands. Now sixty years later, it is clear that the situation is still not satisfactory. While the COP14 of the Ramsar Convention and COP27 on Climate Change have just ended and the COP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity will discuss the future global framework for biodiversity, wetlands remain at the bottom of the political agenda. Yet they are one of the most critical ecosystems for human well-being, hosting an abundance of biodiversity and playing a key role as a "climate buffer". In this context, the Tour du Valat, Ramsar France and the French Committee of the IUCN have launched an appeal, supported by a large number of personalities, organizations and experts. This appeal aims to create a renewed ambition for the conservation and restoration of wetlands, recognizing that wetlands are our life insurance in the face of growing societal challenges. Widely relayed by the press, this call was also disseminated in the Mediterranean basin via the Mediterranean Alliance for Wetlands. A more developed version was sent to several members of the French government including the Prime Minister, Ministers of Ecological Transition, Agriculture, Foreign Affairs... specifying the concrete expectations for an ambitious wetlands policy and the means necessary to achieve this. | | Jean Jalbert Director General .jpg)
| | | | | Avian influenza: what are the challenges for human health, livestock and wildlife? | | Avian influenza viruses (AIVs; also known as bird flu viruses) have probably been circulating for millennia in their reservoir of waterbirds, especially Anatidae (geese, ducks, swans) and Laridae (gulls and terns). They are extremely diverse... | | | Pascal Provost, conservation officer at the Seven Islands National Nature Reserve (Brittany) for the past 10 years, answers questions from the Tour du Valat concerning the massive mortality of Northern Gannets observed in the reserve the summer of 2022, due to the circulation of a new, highly pathogenic strain of H5N1 avian influenza. | | | | | 1962-2022, 60 years of action for wetlands The 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP14) celebrating Wetlands of International Importance is taking place, in a hybrid modality, in Wuhan (China) and Geneva (Switzerland). It brings together representatives of more than a hundred countries, but also many NGOs, around the theme “Wetlands Action for People and Nature”. | | | | | Biodiversity under threat in the Mediterranean: planning ahead to better protect it This study highlights the high exposure of Key Biodiversity Areas to future climate and land use changes in the Mediterranean region. It underlines the urgency of implementing protection measures on these sites to mitigate these changes, particularly in the Maghreb and the Near East where Key Biodiversity Areas are both poorly protected and highly exposed. | | | | | Two PhD students of the Tour du Valat have successfully defended their theses in 2022 | | Dilara Arslan has successfully defended, on May,10 2022, her doctoral thesis entitled: “A comparative study of biodiversity between natural, urban and agriculture environments in the Gediz Delta, Turkey”. 
| | | Pierre Mallet has successfully defended on October, 21 2022, his doctoral thesis entitled: "Role of infrastructures and agroecological practices for biodiversity conservation in field crop systems of the Camargue". 
| | | | | | | | Prespa’s Dalmatian pelican colony hit by a catastrophic outbreak During the first quarter of 2022, Prespa’s Dalmatian pelican colony (Pelicanus crispus) at Lake Prespa in northern Greece was hit by a catastrophic outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza, part of a deeply worrying wave of viral outbreaks all over the world this year, which have affected many species of iconic wild birds, as well as poultry farmers across Europe. | | | | | Importance of the landscape around farm plots for preserving biodiversity in the Camargue farming environment Following a study conducted by the Tour du Valat and Alpina Savoie, recommendations are emerging and a guide to good farming practices is being drafted. This study shows that, in addition to the practices specific to organic farming, which are already very favourable, preserving semi-natural environments, hedges, grass strips, and canals around farm plots has a decisive impact on biodiversity. To encourage the return of biodiversity, it therefore seems necessary to diversify the landscapes around cultivated fields. | | | | | International mobilization to save Lake Marmara in Turkey 25 international NGOs sound the alarm bell to prevent an environmental catastrophe at Lake Marmara in Turkey. Over 98% of the lake Marmara wetland has dried up in the last 10 years. | | | | | Eurasian Spoonbill International Expert Group in Croatia for the 10th workshop The Eurasian Spoonbill International Expert Group met in Zadar, Croatia, October 3-7, 2022, for its 10th International Workshop. | | | | | Wetlands International annual meeting hosted at Tour du Valat It was an honour for Tour du Valat and a pleasure to welcome the team from Wetlands International in Camargue for their Annual Meeting. A great opportunity for interactions with Wetlands International leaders from all | | | | | Catalog of Best Practices for Ecosystem Restoration Within the framework of the Interreg Med Biodiversity Protection Community (MBPC) project, which aims to promote the protection of biodiversity throughout the Mediterranean through the involvement of various key actors, a catalog of good practices in ecosystem restoration has been drawn up. The Tour du Valat has contributed to this catalogue through the example of the restoration of the salt ponds and marshes of the Camargue. | | | | | Eighth Edition of the Ramsar Wetland Conservation Awards – Jérôme Bignon receives the Merit Award Jérôme Bignon, President of the Ramsar Association France, was awarded the Ramsar Merit Award for Wetland Conservation on Monday, November 7, 2022, during the 14th Conference of the Contracting Parties of the Convention. | | | | | Wetlands 2022 Summary: Results of the annual waterbird census in France and public webinar On the occasion of the publication of the Wetlands 2022 synthesis, a webinar presenting this monitoring of the status of wintering waterbird populations was organized by LPO/BirdLife France. The Tour du Valat was invited to present several projects showing the usefulness of this system for research and conservation. | | | | | Arslan D., Ernoul L., Béchet A., Döndüren Ö., Sıkı M., Galewski T. 2022. Using literature and expert knowledge to determine changes in the bird community over a century in a Turkish wetland. Marine and Freshwater Research Online | | Grzegorczyk E., Bézier L., Le‐Rest K., Caizergues A., Francesiaz C., Champagnon J., Guillemain M., Eraud C. 2022. Is hunting nonintentionally selective? A test using game bird capture‐dead recoveries. Ecology and Evolution 12(9):12. | | Poulin B., Lefebvre G., Hilaire S., Després L. 2022. Long-term persistence and recycling of Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis spores in wetlands sprayed for mosquito control. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 243:10. | | Reinke B.A., Cayuela H., Janzen F.J., Lemaître J.F., Gaillard J.M., Lawing A.M., Iverson J.B., Christiansen D.G., Martínez-Solano I., Sánchez-Montes G., Gutiérrez-Rodríguez J., Rose F.L., Nelson N., Keall S., Crivelli A.J., et al. 2022. Diverse aging rates in ectothermic tetrapods provide insights for the evolution of aging and longevity. Science 376(6600):1459-1466 | | Verniest F., Galewski T., Julliard R., Guelmami A., Le Viol I. 2022. Coupling future climate and land-use projections reveals where to strengthen the protection of Mediterranean Key Biodiversity Areas. Conservation Science and Practice Online:17 | | The Tour du Valat opens its doors to the public on Sunday 5 February 2023 as part of World Wetlands Day (WWD). | | | | | Tour du Valat will be present at the 15th World Conference on Biodiversity (COP15) will be held from December 5 to 17, 2022 in Montreal, Canada. | | | | | Tour du Valat - Research institute for the Conservation of Mediterranean Wetlands Le Sambuc 13200 Arles - Ph. + 33 (0)4 90 97 20 13 - www.tourduvalat.org 
Editorial comittee: Jean Jalbert, Coralie Hermeloup and Muriel Arcaute-Gevrey Contact: secretariat@tourduvalat.org
Have contributed to this issue: M. Vittecoq et C. Leray Photos creduts and illustrations: C. Hermeloup (bandeau), T. Galewski, İ. Memiş, H. Hôte/agence Caméléon, R. Marics, F. Verniest, Wetlands International | | Follow the Tour du Valat on our social networks | | | | | | | | | |
