Abstract

The Fundação Florestal/CEMAS Conservation Program aims to reintroduce endangered parrot species to an area where they once existed, and its status is irrelevant within this context. The purpose of the program is the conservation of critical species threatened with extinction due to intense illegal trade and habitat destruction. This objective will be met in Southeastern Brazil, through rehabilitation and clinical management in captivity and establishment of wildlife reserves in order to recover natural populations and their habitats. Focusing on endangered parrot species, the objective is to evaluate pathogenicity and virulence of agents that threaten parrots in captivity and in the wild in order to establish guidelines for reintroduction programs.

We have improved the captive population for the reintroduction of red-tailed Amazon Amazona brasiliensis, blue-cheeked Amazon Amazona rhodocorytha, Illiger’s macaw Ara maracana, green-winged macaw Ara chloropterus and golden-capped conure Aratinga auricapillus recovered from confiscations. For instance, samples were collected of 14 wild individuals of A. brasiliensis from the south coast of São Paulo state aiming to diagnose pathogens related to clinical management. As a result, we had 3 positive samples to Chlamydia psittaci, 1 positive sample to Mycoplasma sp. (PCR), and 3 positive samples to Proteus sp. (here indicating that this group had presented clinical symptomatology), and also Enterobacter sp., Streptococcus sp., Salmonella sp. and Staphylococcus sp. had been isolated from cloacal swab cultures. Concerning to the management of the nestlings from the wild, a comparative study among Candida spp. was developed isolating them from the crop contents. We found C. guillermondii, C. famata was recovered from those individuals and, using the same techniques as the captivity nestlings, we found only one strain of C. albicans. That program experimented with various reintroduction and monitoring techniques, and the results could be instructive for other reintroduction projects in Brazil.