FWS Reclassifies Amazonian Bird Species as Threatened Species

The Fish and Wildlife Service is issuing a final rule reclassifying the golden conure (Gauruba guarouba), a psittacine bird (parrots, parakeets, macaws, cockatoos, and others) endemic to the south Amazon Basin in Brazil, as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The species had been listed as endangered. Though the agency recently ended blanket import-export restrictions for threatened species, FWS is including a 4(d) rule that prohibits imports and exports without a permit, unless the export is authorized under Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and the import is authorized under CITES and the Wild Bird Conservation Act. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect May 26.