Abstract
The American Federation of Aviculture, Inc. (AFA) and AVID® Identification Systems, Inc. (AVID) have partnered to help conservation efforts to save the Lear's and Spix's Macaws in Brazil. AVID will provide three 125 KHZ scanners: one to Dr. Yara de Melo Barros of I BAMA, one to Dr. Lorenzo Cresta, the official Lear's and Spix's Macaw conservation committee veterinarian and one for use at the Lymington Foundation, a private breeding facility for these two very rare species. AVID Identification Systems, Inc. helps the many wildlife species that are endangered or threatened.
With the use of safe, secure AVID microchips, birds and animals can be studied in their habitats or positively marked when taken into captivity or bred in captivity. Unlawful hunting is curtailed when poachers are caught with microchipped animals. The microchip is alsoimportant for documentingbreeding programs andreestablishing populations.
The implanted microchipdoes not harm the animal or disturb its behavior in any way. Millions of dogs and cats, horses, livestock and birds now carry the AVID microchip. Wildlife and endangered species all over the world, including reptiles and even fish are being studied and managed with the aid of this great technology.
Dr. Yara de Melo Barros is the captivity coordinator of the Committee for the Conservation and Management of the Lear's Macaw, a member of the Working Group for the Recovery of the Spix's Macaw and a member of the Committee for Conservation and Management of the Hyacinth Macaw. Within each group she is responsible for the activities, meetings, elaboration and/or revision of action plans, reports, funding proposals and participation in field activities. Currently, she works with endangered species (birds) as General Fauna Coordinator for IBAMA (the Brazilian counterpart to the US Fish and Wildlife Service). Dr. Barros will be using the AVID scanner to keep track of and identify specimens that are moved between captive breeding facilities, and to identify any program birds that may be stolen or moved without permission of the conservation program.
Dr. Lorenzo Cresta of Italy volunteers his time each year to fly to Brazil and inspect each and every bird in the Lear's and Spix's programs. His work with the birds will be easier with the use of an AVID handheld microchip reader so the medical records of each specimen can be properly recorded and each bird identified as it is being examined.
The Lymington Foundation, a not-for-profit organization in Brazil, was established on 26 November 2004 by two North Americans who have lived in Sao Paulo for 45 years. The site of the Foundation is a farm of 100 acres which was acquired 25 years ago in the municipality of Juquitiba, state of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Since that time, the Foundation has been entrusted by the Brazilian government to help preserve the Spix's Macaw (Cyanopsitta spixi1) and the Lear's Macaw (Anodorhynchus lean), two of the most endangered parrots in the world. The founders donate their time and expertise as well as their staff, property, cages, laboratory and more to the conservation and breeding of the birds now in captivity in Brazil. The Foundation works in close coordination with IBAMA, Ministry of the Environment, Brazilian Institute for the Environment, the University of Sao Paulo and the Sao Paulo Zoo. It also cooperates with the Rio Zoo and participates in two international committees for the recuperation and reintroduction of the Spix's and Lear's Macaws. It is also involved in the current efforts and has funded actions in Jeremoabo, Bahia, home of the Lear's Macaw in nature, to help preserve and reverse the decline in the wild population. Lymington has been recognized by the Secretary of the Environment as one of two official breeding centers in the Brazil for the Spix's Macaw and one of five in the world for the Lear's Macaw. The Lymington Foundation birds are all microchipped with AVID® microchips already, and the Foundation employees will use their new reader to make sure they are recording data correctly for each individual bird identified by their AVID chip.
Rick Jordan, AFA CITES Chair states, IDhe use of microchips to identify animals and birds has never been more important than now. CITES and over 154 nations worldwide have accepted microchipping as a valid marking system for endangered species, in hopes to reduce or eliminate smuggling through International trade around the world. In the United States, AVID is the most commonly used chip and they can be found in almost any large collection of birds or animals where responsible animal breeders and owners keep records of their stock. D
Through partnerships like the one between AVID Identification Systems, Inc., and the AFA, we are all working toward conserving the blue macaws of Brazil. To find out more about AVID Identification Systems, Inc., go to www.AVIDid.com.