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Trade of parrots in urban areas of Madagascar

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Kim Reuter at Franklin Scholars
Kim Reuter
  • Franklin Scholars
Tara A Clarke at North Carolina State University
Tara A Clarke
Marni LaFleur at University of San Diego
Marni LaFleur
Lucia Rodriguez
Lucia Rodriguez
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Abstract

The live capture of parrots is causing increasing concern across Africa. In Madagascar, home to three species of parrot (Coracop-sis nigra, C. vasa, Agapornis canus), no study has examined how these species are being extracted from the wild and traded. In this study, we examined the procurement, length of ownership, and the end of ownership of pet parrots. Data were collected via household surveys (n = 440 interviews in 9 towns), market visits (n = 1 7 markets in 6 towns), and opportunistic data collection methods in urban, Malagasy towns. Most Coracopsis spp. are purchased (59%) or captured directly by the owner from the wild (22%), although we were unable to determine how A. canus was procured. Survey respondents reported purchasing Coracopsis spp. for the price of USD 5.36 ± 3.20. The average Coracopsis spp. was kept in captivity for 3.1 7 ± 2.51 years. No survey respondents provided information on the purchase price or length of ownership for A. canus. Ownership ended primarily when Coracopsis spp. escaped/flew away (36%) or died of unknown causes (21 %). A. canus also flew away, although this was only reported in one instance. In-country demand appears to be met by a trade network of both informal and formal actors. It is unclear whether current protections for Madagascar's parrots, as far as the domestic market is concerned, are sufficient to ensure sustainable extraction of live individuals. RÉSUMÉ La capture de perroquets vivants est une préoccupation grandis-sante en Afrique. À Madagascar, qui abrite trois espèces de perro-quets (Coracopsis nigra, C. vasa, Agapornis canus), aucune étude n'a examiné la manière dont ces espèces sont extraites de la nature et vendues et achetées. Dans cette étude, nous avons exa-miné l'acquisition, la durée de possession, et la fin de possession des perroquets domestiques. Les données ont été collectées grâce à des études dans les ménages (n=440 enquêtes dans 9 villes), des visites dans les marchés (n= 1 7 marchés dans 6 villes), et à une collecte de données opportunistes dans des zones urbaines malgaches. La plupart des Coracopsis sont achetés (59%) ou extraites directement de la nature par les propriétaires (22%) ; il nous a été impossible de déterminer les moyens utilisés pour l'obtention d'A. canus. Les personnes interrogées ont déclaré l'achat des espèces de Coracopsis pour la somme de 5,36 ± 3,20 dollars US. En moyenne, ces espèces ont été gardées en captivité pendant 3,1 7 ± 2,51 ans. Aucune personne interrogée n'a procuré d'information sur le prix d'achat ou la durée de possession pour A. canus. Pour les espèces de Coracopsis, la possession s'est principalement terminée lors de la fuite/l'envol (36%) ou la mort liée à des causes inconnues (21 %). La fuite d'A. canus a également été déclarée, mais dans un cas seulement. La de-mande locale semble être satisfaite par un réseau commercial d'acteurs formels et informels. Il n'est cependant pas encore clair si la protection des perroquets de Madagascar, permet que l'ex-traction de ces espèces pour le marché domestique soit menée de façon durable.
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Reuter, K. E., Clarke, T. A., LaFleur, M., Rodriguez, L., Hanitriniaina, S., Schaefer, M. S. 2017. Trade
of parrots in urban areas of Madagascar. Madagascar Conservation & Development 12, 1: xx–xx.
http://dx.doi.org.10.4314/mcd.v12i1.5 Supplementary Material
Table S1. The ten towns in Madagascar (Figure 1) where data were collected, with population,
number of households interviewed, number of individuals who knew someone who owned or had
previously owned a bird, number of individuals who themselves owned or had previously owned a bird,
number of markets visited, and number of markets where pet parrots (Coracopsis nigra, C. vasa and
Agapornis canus) were for sale. (Town codes correlate to the codes shown on Figure 1, population
estimates for cities were obtained from http://www.ilo.cornell.edu/ilo/data.html, or from local officials,
habitat range data taken from BirdLife (2016a,b,c), *does not include the respondents who had
personally owned a parrot)
Town
Region
Population
Within C. vasa habitat range
Within C. nigra habitat range
Within A. canus habitat range
Altitude of town (m)
No. of households interviewed
% seen a pet Coracopsis spp.*
% of current/ former Coracopsis spp. owners
No. years since last seen/owned
No. of markets visited
No. of markets with pet parrots for sale (%)
Ambositra
Amoron'i Mania
32 818
no
yes
no
1318
62
48
21
8 ± 3
2
0
Andasibe
Aloatra-Mangoro
12 000
yes
yes
yes
964
53
11
17
5 ± 5
0
-
Antananarivo
Analamanga
1 054 649
no
yes
no
1276
53
23
11
10 ± 4
4
0
Antsirabe
Vakinankaratra
186 253
no
yes
no
1500
25
68
0
13 ± 5
5
0
Beforona
Aloatra-Mangoro
13 000
yes
yes
yes
549
55
38
6
3 ± 3
0
-
Fianarantsoa
Haute Matsiatra
126 000
no
yes
no
1200
32
25
3
24 ± 6
2
0
Tôlanaro
Anosy
46 298
yes
yes
yes
8
50
32
6
2 ± 2
1
0
Moramanga
Aloatra-Mangoro
40 050
yes
yes
yes
914
60
55
7
3 ± 3
0
-
Toamasina
Atsinanana
201 729
yes
yes
yes
11
50
36
0
17 ± 8
0
-
Toliara
Atsimo-Andrefana
195 904
yes
yes
yes
8
0
-
-
-
3
0
TOTALS
440
37 ±
11
8 ±
5
9 ±
5
17
0 ±
0
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Interpretation and Implementation of the Convention. Species Trade and Conservation. Review of Significant Trade. SC57 Doc29.2. Fifty-seventh meeting of the Standing Committee
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