Guadalajara Reporter

Mexico's native parrot species may be doomed for extinction unless the government takes drastic measures, according to Diego Cobo Terrazas, chairman of the Congressional Commission on the Environment. Backing recent findings by the nature advocacy groups Defenders of Wildlife de Mexico and Teyeliz, the green party congressman from Veracruz is calling on federal authorities to impose a moratorium on the legal capture of parrots, saying that it is the only effective way to put a check on clandestine bird trafficking that is devastating the country's parrot populations.
Cobos named Jalisco - along with Chiapas, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Sinaloa and Nayarit - as a main underground source of wild birds smuggled across the United States border.
Figures cited in "The Illegal Parrot Trade in Mexico: A Comprehensive Assessment," a report released jointly by the two pro-wildlife organizations last February, indicated that Mexican trappers illegally capture more than 65,000 parrots every year.
The report underlines the dire treatment these birds undergo, noting that about 75 percent die from stress, disease, rough handling, crushing, asphyxiation or dehydration before they are sold. In many case, up to 50 parrots were found crammed together into shipping containers barely as large as shoe boxes to endure a prolonged journey to markets here and abroad.
It is estimated that over 9,000 parrots are smuggled into the United States annually. Of the top 10 Mexican parrot species smuggled undercover to U.S. buyers, five are listed as endangered, two are threatened and one is under special protection.
Cobo pointed to offers found on the Internet as a sign of growing demand, citing prices of up to 1,350 dollars for some species.
"Smuggling of certain endangered parrots, such as the yellow headed parrot and the yellow naped parrot, into the United States is increasing, and this demand is pushing already depleted parrot populations in Mexico to the brink of extinction," says Juan Carlos Cantu Guzman, head of Defenders of Wildlife de Mexico and lead author of the report. "Birds are being taken from the wild, sometimes plucked right out of the nest, and dying at alarming rates for sale in the pet trade. Next to habitat loss, parrot trapping poses the greatest threat to the birds' survival in Mexico."
The federal environmental protection agency SEMARNAT currently classifies 20 of the country's 22 native parrot species at some level of threat. The agency estimates that for every illegal parrot that reaches a customer, four others die in the process of their capture, transport and distribution for sale.
Under laws and regulations established to help protect Mexican wildlife, all wild birds that are marketed legally must be tagged with SEMARNAT certification tags. Authorized salesmen, including street vendors, are issued permits that should be displayed in full public view. The capture and trade of chicks is strictly prohibited.
Mexico also subscribes to the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flores (CITES), an international treaty that is intended to check illegal trade of wild birds originating from other countries.
That's not enough for Cobo, who held a press conference last month to urge federal authorities to consider implementing tighter controls. The congressman insists that until conservation programs are operating adequately, a permanent, across-the-board ban on parrot capture is the only way to guarantee the survival of diminishing species.
The full text of the study on the status of Mexican parrots is posted online at www.defenders.org/mexicanparrot/

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