Mayabeque, Cuba: Members of the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) in San Nicolás take action to prevent the hunting of specimens of fauna, based on Decree 180, referring to forest heritage and wildlife.
The Head of the Ranger Corps, Yoel Alfonso Montes, explained that the population must be aware of the damage caused to the ecosystem by poaching and the law penalizes anyone who captures and trades with specimens of wildlife.
He added that minors are dedicated to hunting birds, and parents are called to attention, since in these cases they work together with the municipality’s children officer.
Cuba has the greatest diversity of birdlife in the Caribbean and a high number of threatened species, with illegal trade being one of the great threats.
This is particularly worrisome in the neo-tropical islands because the birds are captured for the illegal national and international market.
Captive wild bird species were identified as pets in ten locations in urban and rural environments of the central region of Cuba, and richness and abundance were determined between August-November 2014 and June-October 2015.