Govt to regulate falcon trade

The federal government has directed relevant authorities to streamline the import and export of falcons, ensuring that birds that are brought into Pakistan are taken back by their owners and not exchanged.

In a meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Management Authority on September 4, a Ministry of Climate Change representative stressed the need to tag falcons with microchips and identification passports, Dawn News reported.

Officials were hopeful that these actions will prevent the exchange or illegal trade of the birds and added, “This is a transit permission, not related to the commercial trade of species.”

The development came after previous incidents where Gulf princes took young falcons along with them and abandoned injured and aged birds, which were later illegally trapped in Pakistan and sold on the country’s black market; this raised concerns about wildlife exploitation, prompting strict rules to protect the birds.