Illegal and Legal Parrot Trade Shows a Long-Term, Cross-Cultural Preference for the Most Attractive Species Increasing Their Risk of Extinction

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0107546
• Publication Date: 2014-09-16T19:06:36Z
• Authors: José L. Tella; Fernando Hiraldo
• Keywords: Poaching; Wildlife trade; Extinction (optical mineralogy)

Illegal trade constitutes a major threat for variety of wildlife. A criminology framework has been recently applied to parrot poaching in Mexico, suggesting an opportunistic crime which the most abundant and accessible species, not rare or highly priced were poached more often. We analyzed this information, together with additional long-term data (1981–2005) on both legal illegal 22 Mexican species (n = 31,019 individuals), using multivariate statistics hypothesis-testing approaches. Our results showed selective capture attending their attractiveness. Parrot widely differed attractiveness people (as reflected by combined measures body size, coloration, ability imitate human speech), strongly correlated prices US markets. The attractive valuable (amazons macaws) disproportionally caught number years they legally trapped. Similar patterns found parrots domestic market, those smuggled USA, exported before after 1992, when USA ban led exports be mostly directed European countries. Finally, cross-cultural preference them among threatened today. Since current responds local demand, socio-ecological work is needed reverse long-standing pet-keeping tradition that may decimate desired Neotropical