Misgivings by Donn Cortez

Author:Donn Cortez
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pocket Books
Published: 2006-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

11

“HEY, NATALIA,” CALLEIGH SAID. “You’ve got access to more than just human DNA databases, right?”

Natalia Boa Vista set down the tray of samples she was carrying beside the autoclave. “Sure. The Justice Project is primarily about using DNA to reexamine old cases, but we exchange data with all sorts of other agencies, including ATF, Fish and Wildlife, and APHIS.”

Calleigh looked puzzled. “AFIS? I thought that was a fingerprint database.”

Natalia smiled. “Not AFIS, APHIS—the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. They oversee the importation of flora and fauna into the country.”

“That’s exactly the kind of resource I need. I’ve got a suspect who might be involved in animal smuggling, and I may need to match a sample against prohibited species.”

“Well, there’s no shortage of those—of the three hundred and thirty species of parrot, two hundred and twenty-eight are regulated. Forty-five of those are on a list banning all trade, and the rest require export permits from their country of origin.”

Calleigh’s eyebrows went up. “You seem to know a lot about it.”

Natalia shrugged. “I knew a guy who was a parrothead. Not a Jimmy Buffett fan, a tropical-bird nut. When I found out how big the black market in animals and animal parts is, I took a professional interest—according to some estimates, the only other criminal enterprise that makes more money is the drug trade.”

“Even more than arms dealing? Maybe I went into the wrong branch of forensics.”

“Well, you’re in the right place, anyway—the U.S. is the biggest market for wildlife and wildlife products. A law was passed in 1992 restricting the import of psittacine species, but by that point, we were bringing in a hundred and fifty thousand birds a year. And that was just through legal channels—there was an underground even then, and it’s gotten a lot bigger since. Birds are usually ‘laundered’ by bringing them in through Mexico, where it’s easier to get export documents.”

“How about Brazil?”

“Home of the Amazon rain forest? Let me put it this way—what cocaine is to Colombia, exotic species are to Brazil. The illegal wildlife trade there generates somewhere between six and twenty billion dollars a year, involving the theft and smuggling of up to thirty-eight million birds and animals. They’re trapped in the forest, then routed through big cities like Rio or Brasília.”

“Or São Paulo?”

“Sure. Then they’re smuggled out of the country to customers in Europe, the Far East, or here. In Asia, they seem to favor using animal parts for aphrodisiacs; in Italy, it’s all about gourmet cuisine. Spiedo uccelli is still considered a delicacy.”

“Am I going to regret asking what that is?”

“Depends on how you feel about robins, thrushes, and finches. It means ‘songbird on a spit.’”

“If you can’t find the bluebird of happiness, settle for having barbecue?”

Natalia laughed. “Something like that. Here in the States, we seem more interested in keeping them as pets—and apparently, we’re willing to pay for it. A bird like a Lear’s macaw—of which there are only about two hundred in existence—will go for upwards of sixty thousand dollars.

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