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CITES Notification No. 2001/052 to the parties issued in Geneva on 10th August 2001
CITES Notification No. 2000/066 to the Parties (on Lear's Macaw) issued on 14th December 2000
CITES Notification No. 2001/052 to the parties issued in Geneva on 10th August 2001
CONCERNING:
Trade in specimens of Spix's macaw
This Notification is being sent at the request of the Management Authority of Brazil, the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Natural Renewable Resources (IBAMA), which is seeking the cooperation of all Parties to achieve appropriate control of international trade in specimens of Spix's macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii).
2. This Appendix-I species is endemic to Bahia state, north-east Brazil, and is included in the Brazilian list of species in danger of extinction. It is considered the most endangered species of Psittacine in the world, with no population remaining in the wild (the single bird previously known to exist in the wild has not been seen since October 2000) and about 60 individuals known to exist in captivity.
3. In 1990, IBAMA, through Portaria No.1638, established the Permanent Committee for the
Recovery of Spix's Macaw, Cyanopsitta spixii, whose members are the Government of Brazil, experts in subjects related to captive-breeding and holders of captive birds. In the same year, the Government of Brazil declared that, exceptionally, it would not confiscate the birds that were included in the official management plan for the species. In 1996, through Portaria No.035, the deadline for joining the captive-breeding programme was extended until 30 October 1996.
4. The management plan indicates that all specimens held in captivity should be managed as a single population, with the aim of increasing the captive population for future reintroduction into the wild. For this reason, transfers of birds between holders are sometimes necessary to achieve the most genetically desirable pairings.
5. The Government of Brazil has expressed the wish that, in order to benefit the conservation of the species to the greatest extent possible, international transfers of specimens of Spix's macaw be authorized only if they are in accordance with the management plan and endorsed by the Brazilian Government.
6. Consequently, the Government of Brazil earnestly requests all Parties not to issue permits or
certificates for import, export or re-export specimens of Spix's macaw without consulting the
Brazilian Management Authority.
CITES Notification No. 2000/066 to the Parties (on Lear's Macaw) issued on 14th December 2000
CONCERNING:
Illegal trade in Anodorhynchus leari
1. The Secretariat has received a request from the Brazilian Institute for the Environment and Natural Renewable Resources (IBAM.A) to seek the co-operation of all Parties to prevent illegal trade in specimens of Anodorhynchus leari (Lear's Macaw).
2. Anodorhynchus leari, CITES Appendix 1, is endemic to Bahia, northeastern Brazil. In
1998, its estimated. population in the wild was 170 birds.
3. This species nests in sandstone cliffs from November to May, a time when it is particularly
vulnerable to capture. Illegal trapping is the main threat to the survival of this species.
4. The Management Authority of Brazil has never issued a permit allowing capture or export of
birds of this species for any reason. The Management Authority states that only two birds are kept
legally outside Brazil, these being pre-convention specimens held. at Busch Gardens, United States
of America.
5. The Management Authority of Brazil believes that international illegal traffic in this species has
intensified in the last decade.
6. Recognizing the need to adopt rules to provide greater protection to this species, the Brazilian
Government created a group in 1992, which is now known as the Committee for the Recovery and
Management of the Lear's Macaw, Anodorhynchus leari. The purpose of this Committee is
to elaborate and implement strategies for the recovery of the species.
7. Brazil is working in collaboration with the Governments of Singapore and the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to repatriate smuggled birds.
8. In order to prevent illegal trade, all Parties are requested to take note of the above information,
alert their enforcement authorities of the presence of specimens of this species on their territory and
inform the Management Authority of Brazil of such cases.
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