Jail Time For Pet Parrot?

In recent years, due to the demand for wild birds in traditional bird-keeping markets, rampant poaching, over-capturing, and illegal trade in wild birds have been repeatedly banned but continue unabated, posing a serious threat to the survival and migration of wild birds, causing a continuous decline in population numbers. Those who keep these birds may not realize that their actions could lead to the endangerment or disappearance of a species in the wild.

The new version of the “National Key Protected Wildlife List” came into effect on February 1, 2021. In addition to retaining all 476 species (classes) of wildlife from the original list, it added 517 new species (classes) of wildlife. Among them, there are 394 species (classes) of birds under key protection, which is 150 more than the original 244 species. The wildlife included in the list, whether wild populations or artificially bred populations, are all under national key protection.

Wild bird species that have long been harmed by the “cage-keeping culture,” such as Hwamei, Skylarks, Red-throated Thrushes, Red-flanked Bluetails, and Red-billed Leiothrix, are all listed as national second-level protected birds. This means that engaging in the private buying, selling, or capturing of these birds will constitute the crime of illegally purchasing, transporting, selling precious, endangered wild animals, or products thereof. The punishment for this crime is imprisonment of up to five years or detention, in addition to a fine, and in serious circumstances, more than ten years of imprisonment.

Apart from the birds listed above, precious and endangered wild animals that will land you in jail also include the national first and second level protected wild animals listed in the “National Key Protected Wildlife List,” the wild animals listed in Appendix I and Appendix II of the “Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora” (CITES). Examples would include the giant squirrel, red panda, asiatic golden cat and caracal cat, which all look harmless and cute enough to be house pets.