The birds include 17 military macaws whose youth and short time in captivity make them good candidates for being successfully returned to the wild in Mexico. A large, green parrot sporting a red frontal patch and blue flight feathers, the military macaw once thrived in Mexico, in areas ranging from Sonora to Chihauhau in the north through Chiapas and Oaxaca in the south and east. Though that moratorium has been lifted for captive-bred specimens of certain species, it remains in effect for the birds being returned to Mexico, none of which could legally enter the United States. Their recovery in the United States and return to Mexico reflects a mutual commitment to conservation and partnership that contributes to the protection of wildlife in both countries. Service special agents believe that these birds, along with many of the others smuggled during this investigation, were taken directly from the wild in their native habitat in Mexico.
Exotic birds smuggled under similar circumstances often fail to survive such treks.
The Service investigation that intercepted the 28 parrots uncovered a multiyear smuggling operation that illegally brought some 300 exotic birds across the U.S.-Mexican border into Texas. A fourth individual arrested in the case has fled the United States and is considered a fugitive.