Summary: Pacific Legal Foundation's Harold Johnson talks with Nancy Speed of the American Federation of Aviculture, Inc. (AFA) and PLF Attorney Christina Martin about the potential delisting of the Golden Conure, a bird bred to be pets. In 2014, the American Federation of Aviculture, Inc. (AFA), filed a petition to delist the golden conure (Guaruba guarouba), also known as the golden parakeet (Aratinga guarouba), which the Service classified as endangered in 1976. The golden conure is native to Brazil, but some members of the AFA own and breed these birds. The AFA wants the bird delisted because, under current regulations, an owner must get a take permit from the Service to move or sell the bird, which increases the cost and difficulty of breeding these birds. The AFA’s petition relied partly on scholarly estimates that the population of the bird has grown from 1,000-2,500 when it was listed to 10,000-20,000.
