CITES permits

[fairdeal]

I just received a notice from a Colombian supplier that from now on all stingrays must have CITES permits at a cost of $130 USD per shipment.

It wouldn't surprise me to see other countries down there start to do the same thing. All of the suppliers just had a big conference and came away with many new twists in ordering which we will find out as we order. I also just received an email from a Brazilian supplier who advised all shipments are to be paid in full from now on or they won't ship. He also attended this conference.

Plecos next on the CITES list?

[stratos]

The CITES cost is not too bad if it gets spread out over a large enough shipment. I've always had to pay in full for shipments from Asia, Australia, and Europe.

With all the dams they have coming to Brazil I am sure a lot of plecos will soon be on CITES 1 or 2.

[fairdeal]

I truly believe that this is only the beginning of the end of a lot of species in the Amazon drainage system. These CITES permits are just the tip of the iceberg. There are now in the works over 40 dams scheduled to be built in this system and there are likely to be a lot more added over the coming years. The permits are issued for each individual species so as the list grows even if they maintain the $130 USD it starts to become very expensive for numerous types to be shipped in. If I were to order 10 pleco species at $130 USD each plus the current exchange rate plus GST it adds up quickly. This does not take into account that as the plecos become scarcer and harder to find the price may escalate to the point where only hard core collectors and breeders will be able to justify the cost. When you consider the number of species that are found only in the Xingu River that may go extinct or near extinction it becomes truly mind boggling.