Abstract

“Caribbean Marine Mammals Preservation Network” was a regional cooperation project funded by the EU and covering the period 2018-2022. It was led by the Agoa sanctuary (French Antilles) and the Regional Activity Center for the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife Protocol (SPAW RAC) of the Cartagena convention. Its aim was to strength-en marine mammal conservation in the Wider Caribbean Region through an enhanced cooperation among countries and territories. Its major outputs were: the development of networking tools, a review of current threats and regulations related to marine mammals in the region and the identifications of priority areas for action, capacity building for species monitoring, propositions for a sustainable whale watching, and knowledge enhancement. The project is now concluded but the network is still active, with 273 participants, from 78 organizations and 31 Caribbean territories. We are now aiming to integrate these first steps in a sustainable Regional Activity Network (RAN) to be endorsed by the Caribbean countries through the SPAW protocol governance. The RAN tasks will be defined in the new version of the SPAW Marine Mammal Action Plan currently being developed by the SPAW Species Working Group. We are also raising funding to work on areas identified as a management priority for the region: knowledge enhancement on species distribution and densities, assessment of major threats, and awaireness raising.

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