Parties failed to reach consensus on granting emperor penguins protected status at latest Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting
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The latest Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting has concluded this week, falling short of granting Specially Protected Species status to emperor penguins.
At the meeting – held in Hiroshima, Japan – delegates from 44 countries, alongside scientific, intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, agreed on the need to protect emperor penguins in light of the dramatic decline in their sea-ice habitat.
The meeting highlighted the increased threat of the climate crisis to Antarctic biodiversity, and the global implications of Antarctic change, but parties ultimately failed to reach consensus on granting emperor penguins this protective status – a measure that scientists argue is needed to secure their long-term future.
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Continued ice sheet loss risks accelerating sea level rise, with far-reaching consequences for coastal communities and ecosystems worldwide. Climate change also has a significant effect on Antarctic species that depend on this environment, such as emperor penguins, which were listed as Endangered by the IUCN last month.
Emperor penguins depend on the stability of fast ice in Antarctica for at least nine months every year, as a platform to mate, incubate eggs, raise chicks and complete their annual moult. Losing this habitat is already impacting breeding success in some colonies.
Naturally, sea ice levels change throughout the year. This is because the ocean surface freezes in winter and melts back each summer in Antarctica. However, since early 2016, this process has changed significantly. Sea ice in the region has decreased in both total coverage and the duration of its persistence. As such, this break-up of ice has resulted in what the WWF refer to as ‘catastrophic breeding failures’.
In 2022, four out of five known breeding sites in the Bellinghausen Sea collapsed, with thousands of chicks, which lack waterproof feathers until almost fully grown, likely freezing or drowning.
With a current population estimate of approximately 595,000 adult emperor penguins, research assessing numbers between 2009 and 2018 indicates that there had already been an almost 10 per cent decline in the population around Antarctica.
Previous modelling has suggested further decline or even extinction of the species by the end of the century.
‘Decision-making under the Antarctic Treaty is failing to keep pace with the rapid rate of climate change,’ said WWF’s chief advisor, Rod Downie.
‘The endangered emperor penguin is a stark reminder of how the climate and nature crises are intertwined. It is therefore deeply concerning that, despite the great diplomatic leadership of our Japanese hosts and the strong backing from most governments, a very small minority of parties blocked consensus on this critical designation,’ Downie continued.
