Earlier this year, customs officials at Miami International Airport discovered a suitcase containing 29 eggs, which were starting to hatch into baby parrots. The smuggler, Szu Ta Wu, had attempted to transport the eggs from Nicaragua to Taiwan. The officials called in zoologist and conservationist Paul Reillo, who set up an incubator at the airport and later transferred the eggs and chicks to the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation (RSCF). Through DNA testing, the parrots were identified as red-lored Amazons and yellow-naped Amazons. The successful rescue of these endangered birds is significant, as it foiled a sophisticated trafficking operation and gives them a chance at a bright future.
Photo Credit: Zdeněk Macháček