Oh, CITIES can and often does become involved, but the blocker that stops the importation of raptors into the US is the Wild Bird Conservation Act.Originally Posted by Saluqi
CITIES comes into play with all international trade between member nations involving the listed species. And CITIES can be a pain, but its just a simple matter of the exporter getting permits certifing that the wild populations were not impacted. But CITIES isnt a show stopper.
The Wild Bird Conservation Act is a US law that was ostensibly written to protect parrots from extreme exploitation by the pet trade. The WBCA forbids the importation of any protected bird species unless 1) its being imported into a conservation co-op as breeding stock or 2) it is being exported by an approved (by the USFWS) foreign facility and as far as I know, there are none dealing with raptors. I am mildly suprised that there hasnt been anyone trying to expoit this opening, but perhaps there just isnt enough of a US market to make it worthwhile.
How raptors got tied in to the WBCA is a bit baffling, but I have heard many point a finger at NAFA for dropping the ball. This is probably not completely fair, but I also havent seen any evidence that NAFA has picked up the cause and tried to remedy things. I, like Barry, would love to see NAFA take this up. The best way to do that is find someone passionate about it and simply give them an endorsement to speak in NAFAs name.
Reply With Quote