[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 15, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-14504]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: June 15, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
 

Wild Bird Conservation Act (WBCA) of 1992; Petition for a 
Moratorium on Imports of Wild Birds From Guyana Into the United States

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of petition receipt.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announces the 
receipt of a petition to impose a moratorium on the imports of wild 
birds from Guyana into the United States under the Wild Bird 
Conservation Act of 1992. The petition has been found to present 
sufficient information indicating that imposing a moratorium on the 
imports of wild birds from Guyana may be warranted under the WBCA, and 
that the trade in wild birds from Guyana may be detrimental to species' 
survival. Through the issuance of this notice, the Service requests 
additional data, comments, and suggestions from the public, other 
concerned governmental agencies, the scientific community, industry, or 
any other interested party concerning trade in, and the status of, wild 
bird species in Guyana.

DATES: The Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) will consider comments 
and information received by September 13, 1994 in making a final 
decision on this petition.

ADDRESSES: Comments and information should be sent to: Director, U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service, c/o Mr. Marshall P. Jones, Chief, Office of 
Management Authority, 4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Room 420 C, Arlington VA 
22203.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Susan S. Lieberman, Office of 
Management Authority, at the above address, telephone (703) 358-2093.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 23, 1992, the Wild Bird 
Conservation Act (WBCA) was signed into law. The purposes of the WBCA 
include promoting the conservation of exotic birds by: ensuring that 
all imports into the United States of species of exotic birds are 
biologically sustainable and not detrimental to the species; ensuring 
that imported birds are not subject to inhumane treatment; and 
assisting wild bird conservation and management programs in countries 
of origin.
    Pursuant to Section 108(a)(2)(B), ``Moratoria for species not 
covered by Convention'' of the WBCA, the Secretary of the Interior 
(Secretary) is authorized to establish a moratorium on the importation 
of all species of exotic birds from a particular country, if the 
Secretary determines that:
    1. The country has not developed and implemented a management 
program for exotic birds in trade generally, that ensures both the 
conservation and the humane treatment of exotic birds during capture, 
transport, and maintenance; and
    2. The moratorium or quota is necessary for the conservation of the 
species or is otherwise consistent with the purpose of the WBCA.
    This notice is based on various documents, including published and 
unpublished studies, and agency documents. These documents are on file 
in the Service's Office of Management Authority, and are available on 
request.
    On August 30, 1993, the Animal Welfare Institute, Defenders of 
Wildlife, and the Environmental Investigation Agency submitted a 
petition (AWI petition) to the Department of the Interior requesting 
that the Secretary impose a moratorium on the import of wild exotic 
birds from Guyana under the WBCA.
    Guyana is slightly smaller in size than the state of Idaho, 
measuring 214,970 km\2\ and 63% of this acreage is forest habitat. Its 
rainforests contain much biodiversity and an abundance of wildlife, 
although the number of bird species found in Guyana is presently 
unknown (WCMC 1992). Guyana has been one of the major exporters of 
neotropical birds (Mulliken et al. 1992).
    The majority of birds exported from Guyana have been psittacines, 
including Amazon parrots, macaws, and a variety of conures and 
parakeets. Between 1983 and 1989, 172,557 specimens of 31 species of 
wild-caught psittacines were exported from Guyana (Edwards 1992). Due 
to mortalities in capture, holding, and transport, far more were 
removed from the wild during the same period.
    The European Community (EC) banned imports from Guyana in 1986 and 
in response, Guyana imposed a nine-month suspension of exports in 1986-
87. Guyana reopened bird exports in 1987 and instituted an export quota 
system, although that quota system was not based on scientific 
analyses. The number of birds exported in 1988 was 19,641 and in 1989 
was 15,325 (Edwards 1992). In May of 1993, Guyana temporarily suspended 
the export of wildlife, including birds until further notice. That 
trade suspension is still in effect.
    The capture and trade of wild birds in Guyana is regulated by the 
Wildlife Services Division, Department of Crops and Livestock, Ministry 
of Agriculture, which serves as the Convention on International Trade 
in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Management 
Authority for Guyana. Within this Division, the day-to-day 
administration is the responsibility of the Assistant Chief Crops and 
Livestock Officer who serves as head of the Wildlife Services Division. 
The National Research Council of Guyana is the designated CITES 
Scientific Authority, although it has been inactive and has made no 
recommendations in the establishment of wildlife trade quotas (Edwards 
1992). The Service is not aware of any scientific research having been 
carried out by or in conjunction with the National Research Council of 
Guyana.
    The Wild Birds Protection Act of 1919, as amended in 1969, is the 
only Guyana law specific to wildlife (Edwards 1992). In 1977, Guyana 
became a signatory to CITES, and the Wildlife Services Division 
presently operates under an `Administrative Agreement' with the Senior 
Minister of Agriculture to implement CITES. Actions taken by the 
Division, including the issuance or termination of export licenses, 
assignment of quotas, and establishment of export levies are all 
undertaken within the framework of this Administrative Agreement 
(Edwards 1992). Information available to the Service does not indicate 
that Guyana has comprehensive CITES-implementing legislation.
    The export of wild birds from Guyana is regulated by a system of 
quotas. This system was established in 1987 in response to the 1986 EC 
ban on wildlife imports from Guyana. The EC initiated that ban on the 
grounds that Guyana lacked a proper management program for psittacine 
exports. The EC lifted the import ban following implementation of the 
1987 quota system.
    The Wildlife Services Division of Guyana assigns quotas for each 
species at levels below those which they believe may threaten wild 
populations (Edwards 1992). Following the assignment of species' 
quotas, the Wildlife Services Division establishes individual quotas 
for each exporter. In the absence of any population surveys or 
scientific data, export quotas are calculated on the basis of 
exporters' previous trade levels (Edwards 1992). The Division has 
reduced or eliminated the quota for certain species upon advice from 
the CITES Secretariat. The species quotas have remained unchanged since 
1990.
    The government of Guyana has not undertaken any field surveys of 
wild bird species in trade (Edwards 1992) nor is the Service aware of 
any demographic studies of wild bird populations being undertaken. In 
the absence of such studies, there is insufficient scientific 
information on which to base the sustainable management of wild bird 
populations in Guyana and to determine that such trade is not 
detrimental to the species. Lastly, export quotas that do not 
incorporate capture quotas make no provision for mortalities during 
capture, transport, and maintenance, with further potential detriment 
to species in the wild.
    The AWI petition claimed that export quotas for macaws and Amazon 
parrots were exceedingly high in the absence of scientific information. 
These are K-selected species which are long-lived, have delayed sexual 
maturity, and exhibit low reproductive rates in the wild. Guyana is 
South and Central America's largest exporter of macaws and export 
quotas for 1991 included 6,000 macaws of the following species: Blue 
and Gold macaw (Ara ararauna), Green-winged macaw (Ara chloroptera), 
Red-bellied macaw (Ara manilata), and Red-shouldered macaw (Ara 
nobilis).
    In addition to psittacine exports, Guyana has been one of the 
largest exporters of toucans to the United States. Very little 
scientific information exists on the status of wild populations of 
toucans, and the Service is not aware of any scientific assessment of 
the sustainable utilization of toucans.
    No records on the domestic trade in Guyana of wild birds are 
available (Edwards 1992) and this trade is neither monitored nor 
regulated. Many species of macaws and toucans are used in subsistence 
hunting by Amerindians. The effects of the domestic trade and 
subsistence use on wild bird populations remain unknown.
    The AWI petition provided information on the alleged illegal trade 
in psittacines from Venezuela to Guyana. Desenne and Strahl (1991) 
reviewed the current status of psittacine populations in Venezuela and 
concluded that the smuggling of birds illegally taken in Venezuela and 
exported from Guyana was a conservation threat to wild parrot 
populations in Venezuela, particularly those in the Orinoco Delta 
region. In October of 1991, the Sociedad Conservacionista Audubon de 
Venezuela (Venezuela Audubon Conservation Society) expressed its 
concern to the CITES Secretariat on the illegal trade in birds from 
Venezuela and cited recent law enforcement seizures of illegal birds by 
the Venezuelan Fish and Wildlife Service and National Guard in the 
Orinoco Delta.
    There appear to be no measures to ensure the humane treatment of 
wild birds during capture, transport and maintenance in Guyana, in 
spite of relevant CITES requirements. The AWI petition provided 
unpublished data extracted from analyses of U.S. Department of 
Agriculture Quarantine Forms which show that transport mortality for 
Guyanese birds is relatively high.
    After a review of the petition and other information available to 
it, the Service concludes that imposing a moratorium on the imports of 
wild birds from Guyana may be warranted under the WBCA, and that the 
trade in wild birds from Guyana may be detrimental to species' 
survival. The information available indicates that Guyana has been 
unable to implement a management program for wild birds in trade that 
ensures both the conservation of the species and the humane treatment 
of birds during capture, trade and maintenance.
    On November 16, 1993, the Service published a final rule (in 50 CFR 
Part 15) in the Federal Register (58 FR 60524), that established the 
prohibitions and requirements of the WBCA, and permit issuance 
procedures for four types of permits established by the WBCA. No CITES-
listed birds can be imported into the United States, including from 
Guyana, unless they are accompanied by an import permit issued by the 
Office of Management Authority of the Service, or are on an approved 
list. The approved list has not yet been finalized. It will contain 
exclusively captive-bred species (wherein all birds in trade are bred 
in captivity), approved breeding facilities, and species with approved 
management plans for wild caught birds. The Service's proposed 
regulations for implementing these approvals were published in the 
Federal Register, March 17, 1994 (59 FR 12784), and included criteria 
for the approval of scientifically-based sustainable use management 
plans, as required by the WBCA. The Service will consider all comments 
and information received by May 16, 1994 in formulating a final 
decision for these approvals, except for scientifically-based 
sustainable use management plans for which the Service will consider 
comments and information received by June 15, 1994 in formulating a 
final decision.
    Therefore, although the importation of CITES-listed exotic bird 
species from Guyana is currently prohibited, non-CITES-listed birds can 
be imported into the United States from Guyana. If, at the close of the 
comment period, information received in response to this notice and 
other information available in the administrative record supports 
action under Sec. 108 of the WBCA, the Service may grant the petition 
and propose a suspension in trade in all wild exotic birds from Guyana.

Public Comments Solicited

    The Service intends that any final decision resulting from its 
evaluation of this petition will be as accurate and as effective as 
possible. Therefore, any comments or data from the public, other 
concerned governmental agencies, the scientific or conservation 
communities, trade organizations, or any other interested party 
concerning any aspect of the wild bird trade in Guyana are hereby 
solicited. The Service is particularly interested in receiving 
information on the status and any population data on the psittacines of 
Guyana, including the Ara and Amazona species.

References Cited

Desenne, P. and S. Strahl. 1991. Trade and the conservation status 
of the family Psittacidae in Venezuela. Bird Conservation 
International, 1:153-269.
Edwards, S. R. 1992. Wild bird trade: perceptions and management in 
the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. In J. B. Thomsen, S. R. Edwards, 
and T. A. Mulliken (eds.) Perceptions, Conservation and Management 
of Wild Birds in Trade. Pp. 93-116. Traffic International.
Mulliken, T. A., S. R. Broad, and J. B. Thomsen. 1992. The Wild Bird 
Trade--an Overview. In J. B. Thomsen, S. R. Edwards, and T. A. 
Mulliken (eds.) Perceptions, Conservation and Management of Wild 
Birds in Trade. Pp. 1-42. Traffic International. Cambridge, UK.
World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC). 1992. Global 
biodiversity: status of the earth's living resources. Chapman and 
Hall, New York.

    Dated: June 1, 1994.
Bruce Blanchard,
Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. 94-14504 Filed 6-14-94; 8:45 am]
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