Abstract

The jabiru stork (Jabiru mycteria) is a very rare bird in captivity. Many years ago, there was a small but stable population in a few zoological institutions, but none had success reproducing them in captivity. The Dallas World Aquarium has spearheaded an effort to bring in young birds in order to infuse new founder stock into an aging and faltering population. In their range in Venezuela, jabiru chicks are often illegally collected by the native people and literally “fattened up” for later consumption. The wildlife department of the Venezuelan government (FUNZPA) confiscates these birds when they are discovered and places them in local zoos if space permits. The Dallas World Aquarium has many in situ projects within the country of Venezuela and has an excellent working relationship with the government; thus, we are often considered for placement of confiscated animals as well.

On 16 May 2003, four juvenile (estimate 1–1.5 years of age) jabiru storks entered a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)-approved quarantine station in Miami, Florida. It was an unremarkable shipment, and the birds settled into the routine of the station easily, especially since they had been in some form of captivity for most of their lives. They were to be cleared after 30 days and shipped but were delayed due to an unexpected heat wave and subsequent restrictions of the airlines in June. When contacted to begin the crating process once the weather had improved, we were notified that they were awaiting some test results so we would not be able to ship that week either. It was the morning of 11 June 2003 that I got the call from Dr. Cambre, the director of the Miami USDA quarantine station, that the private station we were using, as well as other stations in the area had tested positive for exotic Newcastle disease (END). All imports originating in Tanzania were testing positive for the virus. It was at that time we learned the private station we were currently using did not have any solid dividers separating the birds in quarantine. Our storks were not in direct contact with the positive birds, but they had consumed some cordon-blues who had escaped their cages and were basically feral within the station itself. Their swabs had tested negative for exotic Newcastle disease but per USDA regulations would have to be destroyed with all the other birds within this quarantine station.

The jabiru stork is an Appendix I Endangered Species regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which gave these birds protection from the mass disposal; however, this station would have to be completely fumigated and left empty for 2–3 months. Where would these birds go? On 16 July 2003, all the birds in the quarantine were destroyed, leaving only the jabirus in the quarantine station. The original plan from USDA was to issue a refusal-of-entry order and return the birds to their country of origin. There they would have to be housed in a biosecure location for 120 days, after which we could reimport them providing that they had continued to test negative. With a refusal-of-entry order we would be able to reuse our CITES import permit. There was some debate as to the testing location of the cloacal swabs, and would we need a CITES permit to send these to NVSL in Ames, IA? This plan seemed like our only option, and the birds were scheduled to be shipped on 22 July 2003.

However, Venezuela was not willing to accept potentially END-positive birds into the country and refused import. Now we had a problem. We were told that we would have to find another country that had endemic Newcastle and see if they would be willing to take the birds. Dr. Amand graciously offered any support or assistance the AAZV could provide in locating a biosecure location. Venezuela then told us they were going to meet to discuss the situation and for us to wait and see what they could work out. We waited 1 week while the veterinarians, government officials, and our representatives discussed options in Caracas. During this time, the USDA both in Riverdale and in Miami was looking at backup plans in the event Venezuela continued to refuse entry. On 1 August 2003, Venezuela gave a final “No” for re-entry. On 4 August 2003, I received a conference call from Riverdale and Miami informing us that the USDA had thought of a plan to allow these birds to stay in this county.

The four birds were to be relocated to the USDA quarantine station in New York. This station was selected because the Miami station did not have room in its facility for these birds. They were to be shipped basically in sealed crates and shipped directly to New York where they would be transported by a USDA vehicle to the station. There they were housed in a barn with a flock of sentinel chickens. The birds would be tested monthly and after a 120-day quarantine would be released to our possession. The day they were to be shipped, Dr. Cambre drew a blood sample for virology. The birds did show an antibody titer to END, so they had been exposed. Luckily, they continued to test negative the entire time they were in quarantine and on 11 November 2003, the four Jabirus arrived at our facility. They went through a 90-day quarantine from the main collection here at The Dallas World Aquarium. Currently, the birds are thriving, and we are grateful to the USDA Veterinary Services for seeing the importance of a species and not being unwilling to set a precedent when the opportunity presents itself.