Large, colorful beaks in many shapes. These are among the most distinctive traits of hornbills, iconic birds of African faunas (think Zazu from “The Lion King”) and Asian faunas, but they are also the features that make them most attractive for international trade.
A study published in the journal ‘Biological Conservation’ warns that international trade is threatening the survival of these bird species, especially the African ones, for which existing legal protections are meager.
In 1992, most Asian hornbills were included in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which stipulates protections for certain species. The aim is that their trade does not endanger wild populations and the species.
Although most Asian hornbills received CITES protection in 1992, African species remain largely unprotected and their international trade is not regulated.
Researchers, based on data from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), from 1999 to 2024, reveal that almost 95% of hornbills traded internationally are species native to Africa and that their trade increased “significantly” during that period. On the other hand, trade in Asian hornbills has remained steady, something attributed to the regulations imposed by CITES.
According to the data, Cameroon was the leading exporter of African hornbills to the United States over these 25 years, accounting for about 25% of all hornbills entering the United States. Tanzania emerges as the second largest exporter, followed by Senegal and Guinea.
Until 2004, most hornbills sent to the US came from East Africa, but from then until 2020 the main origin was West African countries. However, after 2021, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo emerged as the leading exporters of African hornbills to the US.
The scientific investigation reveals that about 45% of all hornbills exported to the United States were live animals, and the researchers think they were captured directly in their natural habitats, since, as they say, it is very difficult to breed hornbills in captivity.
However, trade within Africa is also a cause for concern. The majority of hornbills traded between African countries involves the decapitation of the birds, as the main aim is to sell their iconic beaks.
Cientistas e conservacionistas alertam que a crescente procura por calaus africanos tem provocado declínios populacionais por todos os países onde essas aves ocorrem. Todos os géneros de calaus são comercializados internacionalmente, mas mais de 80% do comércio afeta sobretudo quatro: Ceratogymna, Bycanistes, Tockus e Lophoceros.
Os autores desta investigação estimam que o comércio de calaus Ceratogymna e Bycanistes para os EUA provavelmente será superior ao comércio global de todos os géneros de calaus asiáticos antes de terem sido protegidos pela CITES.
Entre as espécies mais comercializadas estão duas classificadas como vulneráveis ao risco de extinção pela União Internacional para a Conservação da Natureza: Bycanistes cylindricus e Ceratogymna elata. Para essas, a falta de regulação do seu comércio representa uma ameaça existencial.
Num texto publicado na página online da organização International Bird Conservation Partnership, Nico Arcilla, um dos autores do artigo, defende, refletindo a urgência dos resultados do estudo, que o calau africano devem ser legalmente protegidos ao abrigo da CITES, em particular no Apêndice II, constituído, essencialmente, por espécies de fauna e de flora que, embora não o estejam nesse momento, possam vir a ser empurradas para o limiar da extinção se a sua comercialização não foi devidamente regulada.
Contudo, mesmo isso poderá não ser suficiente. No artigo, Arcilla e os colegas escrevem que é necessário reduzir a procura por calaus nos EUA, que é um dos principais motores do comércio internacional de todas as espécies dessas aves.
Importantes dispersores de sementes e parte integrante da biodiversidade que caracteriza os locais onde vivem, o desaparecimento dos calaus teria amplas consequências negativas, para os ecossistemas e para as comunidades que mais deles dependem.
