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Rearing and trade of wild birds in a semiarid region of Brazil

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Abstract

The rearing of wild birds as pets is directly related to cultural and socioeconomic issues, as well as to population declines for the species involved. This study aimed to inventory wild birds that are reared as pets and analyze aspects of their commercialization and the sociocultural context of this activity in the semiarid region of Paraíba, Brazil. The data were obtained through interviews and semistructured questionnaires comprised of questions regarding wild birds kept in captivity. Thirty men with a mean age of 45 years were interviewed. The birds were identified through direct observation of the species. The Use Value Index, which is a quantitative index that lists species by importance based on usage citations, was calculated for each species in three different ways: UVgeneral, UVcurrent, and UVpotential. Thirty-six wild bird species distributed among 10 families and 26 genera were recorded. The birds were raised because of beautiful plumage and birdsong, ability to mimic sounds, and fighting potential. Trade on wild birds is a widespread activity. Twenty-one (70%) interviewees had obtained their animals from illegal trade, which encompassed all recorded species. Nine respondents were authorized to legally raise and breed these species in captivity. Bird trade is a widespread activity throughout the study region, where individuals of many species are sold at prices ranging from R$ 5.00 (US$ 1.29) to R$ 5000.00 (US$ 1288.85). The results demonstrate the need to implement effective public policies aim at mediating the use and conservation of avian biodiversity, and improving the implementation of management plans for its conservation.

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Abbreviations

UVg :

Use value index

UVp :

Use value potential

UVc :

Use value current

CAAE:

Certificate of Presentation for Ethical Consideration

CBRO:

Brazilian Ornithological Records Committee

IUCN:

International Union for Conservation of Nature

IBAMA:

Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources

ICMBIO:

Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all the local breeders who were studied for their warm reception and for agreeing to participate in the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Etnobiologia e Ciências Ambientais, Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Campus I, João Pessoa, PB, CEP: 58.051-900, Brazil

    Hyago Keslley de Lucena Soares, Vanessa Moura dos Santos Soares & Reinaldo Farias Paiva de Lucena

  2. Laboratório de Ecologia & Conservação de Florestas Secas – EcoTropics, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba, Rua Baraúnas s/n, Campina Grande, PB, 58429-500, Brazil

    Sérgio de Faria Lopes

  3. Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia e da Pós Graduação em Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente – Prodema, Universidade Federal da Paraíba – Campus I, Centro de Ciências Exatas e da Natureza, João Pessoa, PB, Brazil

    Reinaldo Farias Paiva de Lucena

  4. Universidade Federal de Roraima, Colégio Aplicação, Avenida Capitão Ene Garcês, 2414 – Campus Paricarana, Boa Vista, RR, Brazil

    Rainner Rilke Duarte Barboza

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  1. Hyago Keslley de Lucena Soares
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Contributions

HKLS and VMSS collected the data and wrote the manuscript; SFL performed the statistical analysis and contributed to the writing of the manuscript; RFPL participated in writing and correcting the manuscript; RRDB coordinated the field research and writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Hyago Keslley de Lucena Soares or Reinaldo Farias Paiva de Lucena.

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Availability of data and materials

The authors do not wish to provide data of their studies, as some bases charge fees and there is no proper Brazilian database.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Consent to participate

The authors interviewed 30 respondents, who were informed about the aim of this scientific research and agreed to sign the informed consent, according to the standards necessary for this purpose and as described in the methodology through the protocol number.

Consent to publication

The participants who signed the consent form were aware that this scientific research would be published in the academic milieu.

Ethics approval

The aim of this study explained to each informant, who was then asked to sign the consent form required by the National Health Council and the Research Ethics Committee (Resolution 466/12). The research was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the State University of Paraíba (Protocol CAAE-44495115.8.0000.5187).

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de Lucena Soares, H.K., dos Santos Soares, V.M., de Faria Lopes, S. et al. Rearing and trade of wild birds in a semiarid region of Brazil. Environ Dev Sustain 22, 4323–4339 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-019-00386-5

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