International profile
The Swan Champion Project had a high international profile at the Arctic Biodiversity Congress in Finland and the 6th International Swan Symposium in Estonia this month. Presentations about the initiative outlined activities to celebrate Bewick’s swans and their unique tundra habitat and reduce the hunting of swans and other protected waterbirds in the Russian Arctic. Participants heard about plans to create a leaflet and phone app for hunters to help them correctly identify protected bird species and report important information about these special birds.
The Swan Champion Project at the 6th International Swan Symposium
This initiative was also acknowledged for making a positive contribution to the AEWA International Bewick’s Swan Action Plan. At the Swan Symposium, a meeting of the Bewick’s Swan International Expert Group concluded that the reduction of hunting of Bewick’s swans across their flyway remains a high priority and it is hoped that the Swan Champion Project in Russia can be used as a model which could be rolled out at key sites in other countries.
