TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese man was stopped by customs officers at Miami International Airport in March and arrested for attempting to smuggle 29 parrot eggs through the country.
The man, surnamed Wu (吳), was traveling from Managua, Nicaragua on March 23 and planned to transfer flights in the U.S., before returning to Taipei to sell the exotic birds in Taiwan. Wu was reportedly stopped by officers after they heard one of the birds which had just hatched chirping from inside Wu’s carry-on luggage, reported AP.
Wu was carrying 29 eggs, of two different species of parrot; the red-lored Amazon parrot, and the yellow-naped Amazon parrot, which is a critically endangered species. Testing later determined that they had come from eight or nine different clutches.
Although Wu cooperated with officers and showed them his haul of eggs when asked, he was immediately arrested for breaching laws governing the import of wildlife into the U.S. Wu was arraigned in the U.S. District Court of Miami on May 5 and pled guilty to smuggling the animals without a proper license to transport them.
He may face up to 20 years in prison and is set to be sentenced on Aug. 1, reported Fox News.
After Wu’s arrest, the birds were transported to a temporary incubation area at the U.S. Department of Wildlife’s aviary in the Miami area. Of the 29 eggs, 26 hatched. However, only 24 of the 26 chicks survived.
After several days at the aviary, the birds were transferred in late March to the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation near West Palm Beach, where they are still being cared for, per AP. In good living conditions with a proper diet, the parrots can live up to 60 or 70 years, according to reports.
The Rare Species Conservatory Foundation will reportedly work with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services to find a suitable home for the birds. Conservatory staff and officials hope that some of them will be returned to the wild someday in the future.
Parrots at the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation in Florida. (Associated Press photo)
The parrot chicks soon after hatching. (Associated Press photo)
