Ag ZSTT president condemns illegal wildlife trade

This would have followed a recent seizure by the Forestry Division of 22 blue and yellow macaws, with the 15 babies being brought to the Emperor Valley Zoo for rehabilitation.

The comprehensive registration system is intended to improve the Ministry’s enforcement efforts, which according to Minister Rambharat must be intensified with action taken against any person without permits.

De La Rosa speaking on behalf of the ZSTT welcomes this drive towards full registration and advocates that with a banding system it will be easier to identify macaws which would have been acquired from the illegal trade. It also would help to protect those macaws that were bred in captivity, banded and released back into the wild. Asked for an update on the status of the baby macaws, De La Rosa stated, “I have been monitoring the status of these baby macaws which have been quarantined since their delivery to the Zoo and can confirm that they are improving. Several of these birds came with injuries, including one with a broken wing and their general condition was unsatisfactory on arrival.” Condemning those persons who participate in what he describes as wildlife crime, De La Rosa lamented that these birds would have been removed from their nests at such a vulnerable time in their life cycle and smuggled to Trinidad to satisfy the illegal market.

The acting ZSTT President is assuring that the Zoo has the expertise to care for these birds and that its veterinarian has taken charge of the treatment regime. He is urging persons to heed the caution of Minister Rambharat that smuggling birds and animals into Trinidad and Tobago creates risk to the health and wellbeing of the country’s native wildlife species.