Vinaceous-breasted Amazons ready to be reintroduced back to the wild (Photo: Vanessa Tavares Kanaan / Space Silvestre) In the National Park Araucaria, located in western Santa Catarina, a pioneering project is being undertaken to reintroduce the Vinaceous-breasted Amazon back to the wild. The bird occurs naturally in the region, but has not been seen in there for 20 years.
The 30 birds arrived at the park last week. These birds, confiscated from the illegal bird trade, have had a year of training in Florianópolis where they learned to avoid human contact. The birds are now acclimatizing to their new release cages in the middle of the jungle, until they are ready to make their final return to wild.
The team at the relase cages. Image by Instituto Carijós. The biologists that monitor the rehabilitation process conduct a rigorous training schedule. Monitoring is done through a radio collar whose batteries last for seven months, the time needed for adapting to their new lives in the forest.
Next to working with the animals, work is done with the local community. The goal is for everyone to be aware that they should not feed the birds and not capture them. January 2011 over 13 birds were reintroduced to the park. But one of them was killed by a predator. The biologists however expect the 42 birds to breed in the coming season.
The project is conducted by Espaço Silvestre located in Florianópolis in partnership with the Instituto Carijós and has the support of the Environmental Police.