Truffles on the move

Front Ecol Environ doi:10.1002/fee.2033 © The Ecological Society of America species subject to proposed Appendix I listings, and based on a review of the proposals, 17 do not have in situ management measures in place. Although each situation is context specific, a more appropriate first measure for these species could be the development of conservation programs in partnership with local communities, as opposed to the “blunt instrument” app roach of an international trade ban. While trade prohibitions have proven effective at reducing trade volumes for various species (Conrad 2012; Reino et al. 2017), difficulties in predicting their impacts complicate the application of the precautionary principle in CITES; it cannot be assumed that prohibiting international trade is the precautionary option (Cooney and Jepson 2006). Consequently, we argue that evaluation of CITES listing proposals should involve scenario analyses to explore feasible outcomes, explicitly considering market and socioeconomic factors, and highlighting areas of uncertainty. The use of CITES Appendix I as a conservation tool will be most effective if proposals (1) are informed by knowledge of markets for the species and products concerned and socioeconomic factors associated with harvest and supply as well as biological and trade criteria, and (2) feature an evidencebased theory of change explaining how the listing decision is expected to contribute to improving the status of species. All Appendix I proposals should be given appropriate consideration in CITES meetings, so that Parties are confident that, if adopted, there is a high probability that they will be effective.