IUCN Species Survival Commission

The IUCN Species Survival Commission is a special commission operated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The commission's "major role is to provide information to IUCN on biodiversity conservation, the inherent value of species, their role in ecosystem health and functioning, the provision of ecosystem services, and their support to human livelihoods."

The SSC operates a multitude of specialist groups and task forces under its wing. Each group is specifically inclined towards the conservation of a specific taxon or organismal grouping. Each specialist group usually has its own members, agenda, official website and publishes its own scientific journal or newsletter.

Each specialist groups are arranged together by taxon.

Directory of SSC Specialist Groups for Birds

The Heron Specialist Group is a collaborative group of researchers and conservationists focused on the biology and conservation of the herons of the world. Herons are 64 species of long legged, long necked birds in the family Ardeidae. The Group was founded in 1984 by James Kushlan and Heinz Hafner and as of 2008 has over 200 members. It has organized several synthetic studies of herons, published as Heron Conservation (James A. Kushlan and Heinz Hafner, 2000, Academic Press), The Herons (James A. Kushlan and James Hancock, 2005, Oxford University Press), and Conserving Herons, A Conservation Action Plan for the Herons of the World (James A. Kushlan, Station Biologique de la Tour du Valat, Les Sambuc, France). The latter presents the status of the populations of the herons of the world and outlines strategies and specific projects for the conservation of herons.

Directory of SSC Specialist Groups for Fishes

The IUCN Shark Specialist Group was founded in 1991 by L. Fowler OBE and Professor Samuel (Sonny) Gruber. The group is currently chaired by Prof. Nicholas K. Dulvy and Prof. Colin A. Simpfendorfer for the quadrennium (2012-2016). The SSG is a group of 128 experts from 35 countries distributed among 12 regional groups (roughly reflecting FAO fishing areas) in the fields of shark biology, conservation, management, fisheries and taxonomy, connected by their joint goal to promote the sustainable use, wise management, and conservation of all ~1250 sharks, rays and chimaeras. Their mission is to secure the conservation, management and, where necessary, the recovery of the world's sharks, rays and chimaeras by mobilizing global technical and scientific expertise to provide the knowledge that enables action.

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