Ex Situ Assessment for the Integrated Conservation of National Action Plan Parrots and Grey-breasted Parakeet in Brazil FINAL REPORT 11–14 December 2018 Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil Workshop organized by: Parque das Aves, IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group and National Research Center for Conservation of Birds (CEMAVE/ICMBio) Financial support: Parque das Aves and CEMAVE/ICMBio Programa Papagaios do Brasil – Fundação Grupo Boticário Workshop facilitation: Kathy Traylor-Holzer (main), Marina Somenzari & Ana Raquel Gomes Faria Workshop participants: Paloma Bosso, Ana R. G. Faria, Katlin C. Fernandes, Vanessa T. Kanaan, Jaime Martinez, Cristina Miyaki, Fabio Nunes, Ligia R. Oliva, Nêmora P. Prestes, Tania F. Raso, Pedro Scherer-Neto, Glaucia H. F. Seixas, Patrícia P. Serafini, Marina Somenzari, Elenise A. Sipinski (see Appendix, p. 95). Editors of report: Katlin C. Fernandes and Kathy Traylor-Holzer Photo Credits: (cover, from left to right) Row 1: Red-spectacled Amazon (Marina Somenzari); Red-tailed Amazon (Parque das Aves); Row 2: Grey-breasted Parakeet (Parque das Aves); Vinaceous-breasted Amazon (Parque das Aves); Blue-fronted Amazon (Blue-fronted Amazon Project); Red-browed Amazon (Red-browed Amazon Project) IUCN disclaimer IUCN encourages meetings, workshops and other fora for the consideration and analysis of issues related to conservation, and believes that reports of these meetings are most useful when broadly disseminated. The opinions and views expressed by the authors may not necessarily reflect the formal policies of IUCN, its Commissions, its Secretariat or its members. The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Copyright: © 2019 IUCN SSC CPSG Brasil Suggested citation: Fernandes, K. C., Bosso, P., Faria, A. R. G., Kanaan, V. T., Martinez, J., Miyaki, C., Nunes, F., Oliva, L. R.,. Prestes, N. P., Raso, T. F., Scherer-Neto, P., Seixas, G. H. F., Serafini, P. P., Somenzari, M., Sipinski, E. A. & Traylor-Holzer, K. 2019. Ex Situ Conservation Assessment for the Integrated Conservation of PAN Parrots and Grey-Breasted Parakeet in Brazil. IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group – Brazil. Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná. Ex Situ Assessment for the Integrated Conservation of National Action Plan Parrots and Grey-breasted Parakeet in Brazil Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil 11–14 December 2018 Workshop participants TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Workshop Summary 1 2. General Threats and Concerns Related to Workshop Species 3 2.1. Habitat loss 3 2.2. Poaching for pets 3 2.3. Release without criteria 4 2.4. Emerging exotic diseases 4 3. Summary of the IUCN Guidelines Decision Process for Evaluating Ex Situ Management for Conservation 6 4. List of Potential Conservation Roles for Ex Situ Management 9 4.1. Common direct conservation roles for ex situ management 10 4.2. Indirect conservation roles for ex situ management 12 4.3. Non-conservation roles for ex situ management 13 5. Workshop Recommendations for Ex Situ Conservation 15 5.1. Conservation Education 15 5.2. Training and Research 17 5.3. Health and quarantine protocol 20 5.4. Species-specific Recommended Roles 20 6. Amazona brasiliensis - Red-tailed Amazon Parrot 23 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA BRASILIENSIS 26 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona brasiliensis 26 Ex situ management roles not recommended for Amazona brasiliensis 34 7. Amazona vinacea – Vinaceous-breasted Parrot 35 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA VINACEA 41 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona vinacea 41 Ex situ management roles not recommended for Amazona vinacea 48 8. Amazona pretrei – Red-spectacled Parrot 49 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA PRETREI 53 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona pretrei 53 Ex situ management roles not recommended for Amazona pretrei (in Brazil) 55 9. Amazona rhodocorytha – Red-browed Parrot 57 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA RHODOCORYTHA 59 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona rhodocorytha 59 Ex situ management roles not recommended for the species 62 10. Amazona farinosa – Mealy Parrot 63 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA FARINOSA 64 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona farinosa 64 11. Amazona aestiva – Blue-fronted Amazon 66 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AMAZONA AESTIVA 70 Ex situ management roles recommended for Amazona aestiva 70 Ex situ management roles assessed and not recommended for the species 75 12. Pyrrhura griseipectus – Grey-breasted Parakeet 76 EX SITU RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PYRRHURA GRISEIPECTUS 81 Ex situ management roles recommended for Pyrrhura griseipectus 81 Ex situ management roles assessed and not recommended for this species. 87 13. Responsible Parties for Promoting Recommendations 93 13.1. Conservation Education, Training and Research 93 13.2. Insurance Populations and Studbooks 94 14. Appendix: Workshop Participant List 96 15. REFERENCES 98 1. Workshop Summary This workshop was convened to evaluate the potential contribution of ex situ activities toward the conservation of seven bird species in Brazil to complement the existing National Action Plans and support an integrated conservation approach. Such integration is best achieved through careful evaluation by both in situ and ex situ experts, based on the best available scientific knowledge and using IUCN guidelines. This report documents this evaluative process related to the ex situ management for conservation of these species, and presents the resulting recommendations in a transparent manner, allowing its future application. This document may help national and international institutions decide to collaborate with a higher confidence level. Decisions and actions will be monitored, reassessed and improved whenever it is possible. The four-day workshop was facilitated by the IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group and hosted by Parque das Aves in Foz do Iguaçu, Parana, Brazil. Fifteen species experts and ex situ specialists participated in the process (three remotely) to evaluate six parrot species (Amazona aestiva, A. brasiliensis, A. farinosa, A. pretrei, A. rhodocorytha, A. vinacea) and one parakeet species, Pyrrhura griseipectus. Participants consisted of the main specialists in parrots and grey-breasted parakeets in Brazil, with both in situ and ex situ experience, and included representatives from the Brazilian Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZAB), National Center for Research and Conservation of Wild Birds – CEMAVE/ICMBio, and the University of Veterinary Medicine of the University of São Paulo (FMVZ – USP). For each of the seven species, data were collected prior to the workshop on in situ and ex situ status and threats with the collaboration of many professionals and institutions. These data were compiled into species datasheets to support workshop discussions. The workshop followed the five step decision-making process of the IUCN SSC Guidelines for the Use of Ex Situ Management for Species Conservation, which includes: 1) status review and threat analysis; 2) identification of potential ex situ conservation roles; 3) discussion of program characteristics needed for each potential role; 4) evaluation of resources, risks and feasibility; and 5) recommended ex situ roles based on steps 1–4 (see Section 2). After an overview of the workshop process, participants were guided in the development of a threat diagram for the six parrot species (Figure 1). Each threat (known or hypothesized) was placed in the diagram, and arrows were used to indicate the causes of the threat and the specific Ex situ conservation of parrots and Grey-breasted Parakeet 1 impact of the threat on Amazon parrots. Many threats were common to all species, while species-specific threats were indicated where appropriate, including those relevant to the grey- breasted parakeet. This threat analysis provided the basis for discussions to identify potential ways that ex situ activities might improve wild parrot population viability. Participants then considered each of the potential direct and indirect ex situ conservation roles (see Section 3) and determined those roles that may have relevance for the workshop species. Seven potential roles were identified for further discussion. Three potential roles – Conservation Education, Training and Research – were deemed as relevant for all species. These roles were evaluated for Amazon parrots as a group and general recommendations made, with species-specific recommendations added when necessary. Species-specific discussions were held to address the additional potential roles – Insurance, Rescue, Population Reinforcement, and Demographic Manipulation – and the suggested recommendations for implementation or dismissal. About one-half day was spent in discussion on each of the seven species. All recommendations were reviewed for all species at the end of the workshop, final revisions made, and next steps were identified with responsible parties and timelines. This report is designed to serve as a guiding document, so that the ex situ management actions can be developed that best contribute to conserving these species in the wild. These recommendations are based upon best available data, logical decision making and evaluation, and through a transparent process involving both in situ and ex situ experts. It is important to highlight