Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is there someone who can explain how exactly the tortoise trade is regulated by CITES... are permits only required when you import a shipment? What is the difference between Appendix I and II? Thanks.

CITES is strictly international BUT I think it can be used in the Lacey Act.

Aint keeping pets fuuun?

This should help...
http://www.cites.org/

>>Is there someone who can explain how exactly the tortoise trade is regulated by CITES... are permits only required when you import a shipment? What is the difference between Appendix I and II? Thanks.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Hi,

I will try to answer your question as briefly and understandably as possible. CITES regulates international trade in both endangered (Appendix I) and threatened (CITES II) species.

This trade requires both export permits from the country where the shipment originates and import permits from the country to which the animals are shipped.

Theoretically, to get an export permit, the exporter must show proof that the animals or their parents were legally obtained from their country of origin (country where they occur in the wild). This is sometimes not required if the animals were confiscated in a non-native country. Additionally, people have been known to lie and/or use bribery in foreign lands to obtain export permits.

If an export permit is granted, then the animals may be shipped to any country which will grant an import permit based upon feeling that the export permit has been legitimately obtained.

It is virtually impossible to get an import permit for any CITES I species today in the US. The requirements are very strict. The biggest obstacle is providing definitive proof that the importation of the animal(s)will benefit the species in the wild. In most cases, this cannot be done. Captive breeding situations do not qualify as benefitting the species in the wild, by the way. Additionally, if there is any hint that commercial activity such as sales of the animal(s) or the offspring which may be produced will take place, no import permit will be issued.

Also to EXPORT captive bred CITES I animals, one must be a CITES registered breeder of the species. I have been breeding Radiated Tortoises for nearly 40 years and I would have difficulty qualifying to become registered. In other words, legal trade in CITES I animals is virtually impossible today.

CITES II animals are easier to import and export because proof of value to the wild population is not required, but still the individual animals to be shipped must have been legally obtained as stated above, plus each individual must be identified and inspected by a vet prior to being shipped. If leaving the US, the paperwork must exist showing that the animals, or their parents if the animals are CB offspring, were legally obtained.

Then we have the IATA shipping reqirements to consider. Briefly, each animal must be in its own individual compartment in a wooden box which will not leak liquids if the animals urinate. Some airlines/shipping agents are very strict about this, some are more lenient, but it is not an easy task to send animals OUT of the US.

Hope this is somewhat helpful. Sorry if it is long, but I tried my best to give you the information you requested in a nutshell.

I neglected to mention that to become a CITES registered breeder of a CITES protected species, one must have produced two generations of CB offspring of the species for which the registration is requested from at least two pairs of adults.

This means that the breeder must have bred offspring from (legally obtained) wild caught parents (first generation CB), grown those CB offspring to adulthood and then bred them to each other to produce their own babies (second generation CB). This must be documented and proven to have been done by the breeder with AT LEAST two separate pairs of his first generation CB animals.

With tortoises, this requires having bred them for ten to twelve years at the very least. Hence you can see that registering as a CITES recognized tortoise breeder is not possible for most people. The last time I checked, there were NONE registered. Even though I could qualify, it was only after 30 years of work, and it still requires a two year waiting period while the CITES signatory nations decide if it is a good idea to let one register and approve the application.

I strongly believe in habitat protection & thereby protecting the species within the protected habitat.

However I don't see how this CITES red tape actually does the animals/plants any good.

Just my 2 cents.

It does serve a purpose in that it tries to provide a central control and monitoring system for those countries that are willing to participate. The idea is a good one but the logistics has to be daunting.

Most people realize that in most cases it is the over run of the human population that is the primary cause for the disappearence of most of the species listed.

>>I strongly believe in habitat protection & thereby protecting the species within the protected habitat.
>>
>>However I don't see how this CITES red tape actually does the animals/plants any good.
>>
>>Just my 2 cents.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

To go one step further by way of explanation than what Ed said in his post, the CITES "red tape" makes it very difficult for anyone possessing animals which have been successfully (and probably rather easily) smuggled out of their natural habitat in a third world country to ship them legally into the US or any of the other signatory countries.