Cats and Birds information on net.

Sir: The potential for avian flu to spark a global influenza pandemic is first and foremost a human health issue, and one which should be taken seriously. However, the EU's recent one-month ban on imports of live captive birds other than poultry has also put a spotlight on the international trade in wildlife.

Your own recent coverage of avian flu (25 October) claims that '250,000 exotic birds are smuggled illegally into the UK each year'. I believe many of the people promoting this view are motivated by a desire to see the ban on live bird imports extended after the health crisis has passed.

The reality is that international trade in the 1,700 species of wild birds regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is well managed and subject to robust tests for sustainability.

Many of the world's poorest communities rely on the earnings that trading wildlife can bring, and without this income people living in close proximity to wild animals may not have the same incentive to protect them. Developing countries need to be assured that unilateral trade bans will only persist as long as there are legitimate human health concerns behind them.

Whilst the UK might import several hundred thousand wild birds per year, the Mammal Society reports that about 55 million are killed each year by cats in the UK with, according to the RSPB, no evidence that this is having any impact on bird populations.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:01 AM