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Nature Conservation 1/2012 — 13. 6. 2012 — International Nature Conservation — Print article in pdf
Invasive alien species have been considered a main direct driver of biodiversity decline after habitat fragmentation, degradation and loss.
On the other hand, pets (any animal kept or intended to be kept by man particularly in his household for private enjoyment and companionship) have been kept by humans for millennia. Half the households in Europe currently keep animals as companions or pets. Almost 7,000 species from a wide range of taxa incl. mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and both aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates may already be owned, some for a considerable period, by household as pets across the continent. Although a relatively small part of pets can become invasive alien species in Europe, the latter include significantspecies, e.g. the Eastern Grey Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), Raccoon (Procyon lotor), Sika Deer (Cervus nippon), Canada Goose (Branta canadensis), Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis), Ring-necked Parakeet (Psittacula krameri), Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta) or the American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus). At its 15thmeeting, held in November 2011 in Montreal, the Convention on Biological Diversitys scientific panel, the SBSTTA, addressed the risks associated with the introduction of alien species as pets, aquarium and terrarium species, as live bait and live food. Within the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, commonly known as the Bern Convention, the European Code of Conduct on Pets and Invasive Alien Species has been under preparation: the document is intended to help to raise public awareness, and provide practical guidance to reduce further the chances of pet species becoming invasive in Europe.