July 27, 2007

Subject: Species Listing Changes Adopted at the 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)

Background: The CITES Party countries meet approximately every two years at a meeting of the Conference of the Parties. During this meeting, the countries review and vote on resolutions and decisions to improve the effectiveness of CITES and amendments to the listings of protected species in CITES Appendix I and Appendix II. Resolutions, decisions, and amendments to the listing of protected species adopted at a CITES meeting become effective 90 days after the last day of the meeting unless an implementation delay was adopted at the meeting. The most recent meeting of the Conference of the Parties was held in The Hague, the Netherlands, June 3-15, 2007.

Action: The following amendments to the CITES Appendices I and II will be effective on September 13, 2007. Any specimens of these species imported into, or exported from, the United States on September 13, 2007, will require CITES documentation as appropriate under the amended listings. For shipments accompanied by CITES documents reflecting the pre-September 13 listings, all import, export, or re-export activity must be completed by midnight (local time at the point of import/export) on September 12, 2007. The official revised CITES Appendices are available on-line on the CITES website at http://www.cites.org. Importers and exporters should review the updated CITES list of protected species (http://www.cites.org) and should also monitor the website for updates to the CITES resolutions or decisions.

• Agave arizonica - Arizona agave
• Pereskia , Pereskiopsis, and Quiabentia genera - Leaf-bearing cacti
• Shortia galacifolia - Oconee bells

• Nycticebus species - slow lorises
• Heloderma horridum charlesbogerti - Guatemalan beaded lizard

• Melanosuchus niger - Black caiman (Brazilian population only) [Import into the United States requires ESA permit]
• Nolina interrata - Dehesa bear grass

• Gazella cuvieri - Cuvier’s gazelle
• Gazella leptoceros - Slender-horned gazelle
• Family Pristidae 6 species of sawfish (see annotation)

• Pristis microdon - Largetooth sawfish (see annotation)
• Anguilla anguilla -European eel (Note: This listing becomes effective March 13, 2009)
• Caesalpinia echinata- pernambuco (see annotation)

• Loxodonta africana African Elephant- ( Namibia population) annotation amended to allow:
  -trade in hunting trophies for non-commercial purposes
  -trade in live animals for in-situ conservation purposes
  -trade in hides, hair goods, leather goods for commercial and non-commercial purposes
  -trade in marked and certified ivory ekipas (tourist souvenirs) for non-commercial purposes [Stricter U.S. domestic legislation may not allow import of ivory; check with the Service.]



• Loxodonta africana African Elephant- ( South Africa population) annotation amended to allow:
  -trade in hunting trophies for non-commercial purposes
  -trade in live animals for in-situ conservation purposes
  -trade in hides, hair, and leather goods for commercial and non-commercial purposes



• Loxodonta africana African Elephant- ( Botswana population) annotation amended to allow:
  -trade in hunting trophies for non-commercial purposes
  -trade in live animals to appropriate and acceptable destinations
  -trade in hides, hair, and leather goods for commercial and non-commercial purposes



• Loxodonta africana African Elephant- (Zimbabwe population) annotation amended to allow:
  -trade in hunting trophies for non-commercial purposes
  -trade in live animals to appropriate and acceptable destinations
  -trade in hides and hair for both commercial and non-commercial purposes
  -trade in leather goods for non-commercial purposes
  -trade in ivory carvings for non-commercial purposes [Stricter U.S. domestic legislation may not allow import of ivory; check with the Service.]



• Loxodonta africana - trade in registered raw ivory for Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe from existing stockpiles registered by January 31, 2007, subject to certain conditions.



• Vicugna vicugna Vicuña populations of Bolivia for the exclusive purpose of allowing international trade in wool sheared from live vicuñas, and in cloth and items made thereof, including luxury handicrafts and knitted articles.



• Pristis microdon Largetooth sawfish - For the exclusive purpose of allowing international trade in live animals listed in Appendix II to appropriate and acceptable aquaria for primarily conservation purposes. All other species are included in Appendix I.



• Caesalpina echinata pernambuco - annotation states that logs, sawn wood, veneer sheets, including unfinished wood articles used for the fabrication of bows for stringed musical instruments, require permits; finished bows and other finished products are not covered by the listing and are not covered by the provisions of CITES.



• Taxus - Deletion of the current annotation for Taxus chinensis, T. fuana, and T. sumatrana, and a new annotation for artificially propagated hybrids and cultivars of T. cuspidata in pots or other small containers to be exempted from CITES controls.



• Amendment of the annotations to Adonis vernalis, Guaiacum species, Hydrastis canadensis, Nardostachys grandiflora, Panax ginseng, Panax quinquefolius, Picrorhiza kurrooa, Podophyllum hexandrum, Pterocarpus santalinus, Rauvolfia serpentina, Taxus chinensis, T. fuana, T. cuspidata, T. sumatrana, and T. wallichiana,Orchidaceae species in Appendix II, and all Appendix-II and -III taxa annotated with annotation #1.

Contact:
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Office of Law Enforcement
703-358-1949 703-358-2271 (fax)
lawenforcement@fws.gov (e-mail)