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Protected Species Act Amendments

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The commencement notice for the Protected Species Amendment Act 2011 appeared in the official gazette (the Bermuda Sun) on Friday January 20th. This means that the act is now in force. The amended Protected Species Order 2012 also appeared. The Order provides the list of species to which the Act applies. Both notices can be read below. For more information on the species, please read our Protected Species Page.

 

BERMUDA

PROTECTED SPECIES AMENDMENT ACT 2011 COMMENCEMENT DAY

NOTICE 2012

BR 6/ 2012

The Minister responsible for conservation services, in exercise of the power conferred by section 9 of the Protected Species Amendment Act 2011, gives the following Notice:

Citation

1 This Notice may be cited as the Protected Species Amendment Act 2011 Commencement Day Notice 2012.

Commencement

2 The Protected Species Amendment Act 2011 shall come into operation on 20 January 2012.

Made this 17th day of January 2012

Minister of Public Works

BERMUDA

PROTECTED SPECIES ORDER 2012

BR 7/ 2012

The Minister responsible for conservation services, in exercise of the power conferred by sections 5 and 5A of the Protected Species Act 2003, makes the following Order:

Citation

1 This Order may be cited as the Protected Species Order 2012.

Protected species

2 The species of plants and animals set out in the Schedule to this Order are classified as critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable in accordance with the criteria set out in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN) and are declared to be protected species.

Level of protection

3 The species of plants and animals set out in the Schedule to this Order are classified as level 1, level 2 or level 3 in accordance with the criteria set out in section 5A of, and the Schedule to, the Protected Species Act 2003.

Revocation

4 The Protected Species Order 2007 and the Protected Species Notice of Intention 2011 are revoked.

SCHEDULE

(paragraph 2 and 3)

LEVEL 1

Birds

Bermuda Petrel or Cahow (Pterodroma cahow) (E) EN (D)

White-tailed Tropic Bird (Phaethon lepturus catesbyi) (N) VU (D1 + 2)

White-eyed Vireo or Chick-of-the-Village (Vireo griseus

bermudianus) (E) VU (D1 + 2)

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) (N) VU

Green Heron (Butorides virescens) (N) VU

Cave Amphipods

Idunella sketi (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cocoharpinia iliffei (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Pseudoniphargus grandimanus (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Bermudagidiella bermudensis (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Ingolfiella longipes (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Copepods

Antriscopia prehensilis (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Erebonectes nesioticus (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Paracyclopia naessi (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Speleophria bivexilla (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Speleophriopsis scottodicarloi (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Nanocopia minuta (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Speleoithona bermudensis (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Isopods

Atlantasellus cavernicolus (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Currassanthura bermudensis (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Arubolana aruboides (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Mysids

Platyops sterreri (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Ostracods

Spelaeoecia bermudensis (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Mictaceans

Mictocaris halope (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Segmented Worms

Phallodriloides macmasterae (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Cave Shrimps

Typhlatya iliffei (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Procaris chacei (E) CR (B1 + 2C)

Barbouria cubensis (N) CR (B1 + 2C)

Parhippolyte sterreri (N) CR (B1 + 2C)

Ferns

Governor Laffan’s Fern (Diplazium laffanianum) (E) CR (D)

Bermuda Shield Fern (Goniopteris bermudiana) (E) CR (B2)

Bermuda Cave Fern (Ctenitis sloanei) (N) CR (B1)

Long Spleenwort (Asplenium heterochroum) (N) EN (C2a)

Toothed Spleenwort (Asplenium dentatum) (N) EN (B1a, b)

Ten-day or Leatherleaf Fern (Rumohra adiantiformis) (N) CR (D)

Finfish

Longsnout Seahorse (Hippocampus reidi) (N) VU (D)

Lined Seahorse (Hippocampus erectus) (N) VU (A4c, d)

Gag (Mycteroperca microlepis) (N) VU (A1b, d + 2d)

Tiger Grouper (Mycteroperca tigris) (N) EN (A1d)

Mutton Hamlet (Alphestes afer) (N) CR (A1d)

Nassau Grouper (Epinephelus striatus) (N) EN (A2a, d)

Snowy Grouper (Epinephelus niveatus) (N) VU (A1d + 2d, B1 + 2e)

Freshwater Molluscs

Ancylus bermudensis (E) CR (D)

Pisidium volutabundum (E) CR (D)

Land Crabs

Land Hermit Crab (Coenobita clypeatus) (N) VU

Giant Land Crab (Cardisoma guanhumi) (N) VU

Marine Mammals

Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) (N) VU

Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) (N) VU (A1d)

Marine Molluscs

Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) (N) EN (B2a, biii)

Moss

Bermuda Campylopus (Campylopus bermudianus) (E) CR (C)

Rays and Skates

Spotted Eagle Ray (Aetobatus narinari) (N) VU (A2d)

Reptiles

Bermuda Skink (Eumeces longirostris) (E) CR (B1, B2b, c, d, e)

Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas) (N) EN (A1b, d)

Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) (N) CR (A1b, d)

Loggerhead Turtle (Caretta caretta) (N) EN (A1a, b, d)

Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) (N) CR (A1a, b, d)

Sharks

Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus) (N) VU (A1b, d + 2d)

Terrestrial Snail

Poecilozonites circumfirmatus (E) CR (A2, B2a)

LEVEL 2

Finfish

Bermuda Killifish (Fundulus bermudae) (E) EN

Killifish (Fundulus relictus) (E) EN

American Eel (Anguilla rostrata) (N) VU

European Eel (Anguilla anguilla) (N) CR (A2bd + 4bd)

Flowering Plants

Red Mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) (N) VU

Black Mangrove (Avicennia germinans) (N) VU

Yellow Wood Tree (Zanthoxylum flavum) (N) CR

Marine Molluscs

Bermuda Sand Scallop (Euvola ziczac) (N) EN

Calico Scallop (Argopecten gibbus) (N) EN

Marine Plants

Turtle Grass (Thalassia testudinum) (N) VU

Manatee Grass (Syringodium filiforme) (N) VU

Shoal Grass (Halodule sp.) (N) VU

Shoal Grass (Halodule bermudensis) (E) CR

Paddle Grass (Halophila decipiens) (N) VU

Reptiles

Diamondback Terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) (N) VU

LEVEL 3

Flowering Plants

Bermuda Sedge (Carex bermudiana) (E) CR

Wild Bermuda Pepper (Peperomia septentrionalis) (E) CR

Wild Bermuda Bean (Phaseolus lignosus) (E) CR

Darrell’s Fleabane (Erigeron darrelliannus) (E) VU

Bermuda Bedstraw (Galium bermudense) (N) EN

St. Andrew’s Cross (Hypericum hypericoides) (N) CR

Bermuda Snowberry (Chiococca alba) (N) VU

Bermuda Cedar (Juniperus bermudiana) (E) VU

Bermuda Palmetto (Sabal bermudana) (E) VU

Bermuda Olivewood (Cassine laneana) (E) VU

Abbreviations:

CR= Critically Endangered

EN= Endangered

VU= Vulnerable

(E)= Endemic, only found in Bermuda

(N)= Native, indigenous to Bermuda and other places

Made this 17th day of January 2012

Minister of Public Works

 

Archaeology Magazine features Mary Celestia

Archaeology Magazine's November/December 2011 issue (Vol. 64 #6) featured an article Letters from Bermuda: Secrets of a Civil War Shipwreck by Dr. James Delgado. The article describes the sinking of the American Civil War blockade runner Mary Celestia on a Bermuda reef and the 2011 excavation of the wreck by scientists from the American National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Bermuda Government.

The article can be read here: http://www.archaeology.org/1111/letter/mary_celestia_bermuda_civil_war_noaa.html

Increased penalties for harming Bermuda's protected species

Today, Bermuda's House of Assembly passed amendments to the Protected Species Act that will increase penalties for harming Bermuda's protected species. The changes include a new maximum of a $25,000 fine or two years imprisonment for offenses related to species falling under the Category 1 classification, which include the Cahow, Spotted Eagle Ray, Bermuda Skink and the Green Turtle. 

For the full Minister's statement please go to the article found in BerNews. 

 

Madagascar exhibit now open at BAMZ

"Madagascar: Land of Mystery and Wonder"

From left: Minister Walter Roban, Philip Butterfield, Kevin Comeau, Dr. Ian Walker

The Madagascar exhibit is open! Hard work and dedication from the BAMZ staff and many others, plus the support from HSBC and the Bermuda Zoological Society has made it possible to give visitors to the facility a rare glimpse into the vast wilderness of Madagascar.

Photo by Akil Simmons, Royal Gazette 

Come visit “Orana” (Malagasy for “rain”) the Fossa, a cat-like carnivore endemic to Madagascar. Also, soon to come to the exhibit will be ring-tailed lemurs, snakes, chameleons and others.

Click below for local articles about the exhibit:

The Royal Gazette

BerNews.com

Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan United Kingdom Award 2012

On behalf of the Ministry of Education, we would like to make potential scholars aware of an opportunity to study in the UK through the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan 2012. Details of the award and how to apply can be found here. Online appliactions are due on December 1st 2011. The Ministry of Education can be contacted at 278-3343 for further information.

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Bermuda Audubon Society opens restored Seymour's Pond Nature Reserve

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Congratulations to the Bermuda Audubon Societyon the restoration of the brackish pond habitat at Seymour's Pond Nature Reserve on Barnes Corner, Southampton. Members of the Society and contractor Bell's Skyline Excavating dug out parts of the pond which had become filled and removed garbage from the pond.

Audubon Society volunteers also culled invasive plants which were filling in the edges of the pond and replaced them native and endemic species. The Ministry of Public Works has replaced the adjacent road drain on Middle Road as part of the habitat restoration and it is hoped this will improve the water quality in Seymour's Pond for birds and the resident population of endemic Killifish which were introduced this year.

This habitat restoration fulfills many BSAP activities, including invasive species removal, native planting, habitat restoration, protected area improvement, protected species management and government/NGO collaboration.

The Governor planted an Olivewood at the reserve during the opening on October 22nd

Bermuda Sun news article

Opportunities to study at the University of Reading: Biology and Conservation

An aim of the UKOTs and CDs Training and Research Programme is to develop opportunities for students from the UKOTs (including Bermuda) and CDs to study at the University of Reading. As such, it is essential to raise UKOT/CD student awareness of the biological science courses available at the University of Reading in the next academic year (2012/13).  Students in the UK begin to make choices about what university courses they would like to apply for early in their last academic year at school (i.e. from now onwards), so it would be useful for UKOT/CD students to be made aware of UK courses at this time also.

It must be clarified that students wishing to study in the UK must be self-funded, as there is no scholarship funding currently available.

 A document outlining the courses can be found here. Enquires should be directed to the University of Reading.