The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has listed the tree species Mongolian oak (Quercus mongolica) and Manchurian ash (Fraxinus mandshurica) in Appendix III.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation sent a request for the listing of these tree species protected on the territory of Russia in CITES Appendix III last year.
"The Appendix includes valuable species of woody plants, which are specifically protected. These species, in particular, are included in the Red Data Books of the Trans-Baikal Territory (Mongolian oak) and the Amur Region (Manchurian ash)", - said Rinat Gizatulin, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation.
The listing of the tree species Mongolian oak and Manchurian ash in CITES Appendix III will not affect organizations which legally perform lumbering. Restrictions will affect only those who are involved in illegal logging and smuggling the wood out of Russia.
"Undoubtedly, the listing of the Mongolian oak in Appendix III will affect positively the preservation not only of the Amur tiger, but also a wide range of animals. The acorn, or oak nut is willingly eaten by the wild boar and the spotted deer. To a lesser extent it is eaten by the red deer and the roe deer. Finally it is the forage basis for tigers and leopards, - says Sergey Aramilev, director of the Primorsky branch of the Amur Tiger Center. – The example of the Korean pine showed that after its listing in CITES Annex its exports decreased by the order of magnitude, so there is no doubt that such a measure will be effective regarding to the oak. The preservation of the cedar and the oak is a guarantee for a high number of hoofed animals and hence the tiger."
The decision to list the Mongolian oak in Appendix also has a positive impact on the growth of the sable population which is the most important trade species in the Far East.
"Few people know, but pine nuts and acorns are the forage basis for rodents. In the years when the crops are good rodents outbreak their number increasing the number of sable known as "soft gold". Despite the fact that the price for sable is unstable, a certain part of the population is employed in its production and is entirely dependent on it. And if the hunter is engaged in the production, he would never even think about risking freedom by getting a tiger ", - says Sergey Aramilev.