© Associated Press Provided by Panamanian Pet TradeANCON, Panama (AP) -- In a rainforest near the Panama Canal, two black-armed spider monkeys balance on their long tails and swing around a wire fence. They ended up in this state rehabilitation center after conservationists confiscated them from people who kept them as pets.
© Provided by The Associated Press . An ocelot receives treatment as it prepares for release at the Department of Environmental Rehabilitation Center in Panama City on Wednesday, September 28, 2022. The center protects wild animals rescued from commercial networks. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)In the coming months, biologists and veterinarians will put them on a diet that reflects what they eat in the wild, help them relearn survival skills in the wild, and remove them from human contact.
Panamanian authorities are trying to draw attention to the dangers to people and wildlife of keeping wild animals in their homes. Panama hosted the World Wildlife Conference this month, where participants voted to tighten restrictions on international trade in animals and plants.
Black-armed spider monkeys are considered one of the world's most endangered species, and Panama's Department of Environment says they are "critically endangered." Monkey trading is allowed only in exceptional cases.
"People don't understand that they can't buy wild animals from someone who doesn't have a license to sell them," said Felipe Cruz, environmental crime adviser at the Department of Environment. “The environment can't take it anymore. We are at a critical juncture."
From January to September, Panama's attorney general recorded 19 cases of wildlife trafficking and 14 cases of poaching of protected or endangered species. Environment Agency consultant Shirley Binder said the true scale of the problem could be greater.
© Provided by The Associated Press . An ocelot follows a veterinarian before being released into the wild Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, at a rehabilitation center of Panama's environment ministry. Built on a site adjacent to a former US military installation, this new state rehabilitation center has begun accepting animals during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)"The country is big, there may be cases that we don't have," Binder said. "We have formed strategic alliances with the security sectors who are now aware of environmental issues ... but we also need the support of the general public so that when they see such incidents, they report them."
© Provided by The Associated Press. Veterinarian Marian Parks holds a toucan that was being treated before being released into the wild at the Panama City Department of Environmental Rehabilitation Center on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022. Built on a site adjacent to a former US military installation, this new state rehabilitation center. Adoption of animals began during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)Earlier this year, the government published a catalog with photos and technical data to help identify the best-selling species. It was planned to be distributed among law enforcement, border and customs services across the country.
Panamanian law severely limits ownership of wild animals. The Department of Environment allows for the cultivation and consumption of zoos, breeding centers or some protein sources such as deer and iguana, but not for endangered species.
Biologist Samuel Sucre runs a company, Natural Tank, which is licensed by the government to collect and raise wild amphibians and reptiles for sale.
Sucre said the government has shut down some "ghost farm" operations.
"These farms claimed to breed frogs, but in reality they just collected them from the fields and then claimed they were raised on their farms," Sucre said.
"The problem with human trafficking in developing countries like mine is that people don't understand the value of this resource," says Sucre. Those who want to sell cattle go to villagers whose income is very low and offer to pay for a frog.
Instead, he recommends finding sustainable ways to commercialize certain species so that people can learn the value of natural resources and earn a living.
© Provided by The Associated Press . An ocelot receives treatment as it prepares for release at the Department of Environmental Rehabilitation Center in Panama City on Wednesday, September 28, 2022. The center protects wild animals rescued from commercial networks. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)According to Eric Nunez, the Department of Environment's National Director of Biodiversity, spider monkeys are one of the most popular wildlife species. "They are usually friendly with people...but when they reach puberty, when they get jealous, they can become aggressive and attack people," he said. "It's a normal behavior of the species when under stress."
He said that primates are relatively easy to adapt to life with humans, which makes their rehabilitation particularly challenging.
A new state rehabilitation center built on a site adjacent to a former US military installation has begun accepting animals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Animals come in and out, but it can hold 50 animals and has plans to expand.
Primates such as spider monkeys are among the most common visitors, but the center is also home to feline species such as ocelots and jaguars, and birds such as toucans and owls.
The two spider monkeys, who arrived separately this year, have a long rehabilitation ahead of them. "These are animals that are very used to being around humans," Nunez said. “We come once a day to bring food. We have very little familiarity with it”.
By feeding them fruits like papaya and mango, biologists also collect fruits in the wild. As they approach release, their diet changes from fruits they cannot find in the wild, to leaves and even eggs from bird nests. According to Nunez, biologists hide food in the enclosure to "evoke this wild natural instinct."
They are released only after careful evaluation by the center's biologists and NGO experts. Monkeys need to show that they can get their own food and recognize other members of their species.
Nunez says people still consider monkeys to be good pets and describes this attitude as "unfair and inappropriate".
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