Examining Resolutions and Articles from the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) to find strategic opportunities for the Working Group on Migratory Species and Health

The recent international calls for co-management of conservation and health are innovative in how we conceive and manage wildlife health. The creation of a CMS Working Group on Migratory Species and Health provides an opportunity to implement these innovations.

A bridge between wildlife conservation and health can be built upon the shared determinants affecting the health and resilience of people and wildlife populations and the shared drivers endangering wildlife health and conservation status. The determinants and drivers interact to create the threats, vulnerabilities and capacities affecting how wildlife accesses their needs for daily living, copes with their environments and fulfills their social and ecological roles. Modern wildlife health management acts throughout a continuum of possible interventions uniquely tailored to the population’s health needs and status. A continuum of care needs collaboration across disciplines, jurisdictions and species to promote recovery, reduce impacts, prevent harms and promote health and resilience.