A man was caught attempting to smuggle parrots into California after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers noticed “unusual clothing bulges” around his ankles and discovered six birds stuffed into his boots, authorities said.
The bizarre incident happened April 30, when Customs and Border Patrol Agents pulled aside a 51-year-old man applying for admission to the United States from Mexico at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry.
An officer spotted the misshapen lumps around the man’s feet after asking him to step outside his vehicle. When they patted him down, they discovered the undeclared birds hidden in his boots. They found six additional parrots in his car, including two that were dead, according to the CBP.
“The smuggling of birds is extremely dangerous,” Sidney Aki, director of CBP San Diego field operations, said in a statement. “Birds can also be hosts for a variety of diseases that can threaten native wildlife and U.S. agricultural industries, potentially causing widespread economic consequences.”
This is not the only recent livestock smuggling attempt thwarted at a U.S.-Mexico border crossing in California.
On May 4, a 26-year-old-man applying for admission to the United States at the San Ysidro Port of Entry was caught attempting to smuggle 16 live parakeets and three live chickens, officials said. CBP officers saw a blanket moving inside the man’s car and discovered the animals in two cages underneath it, authorities said.
Last March, officers found 21 parrots and a keel-billed toucan while searching a sedan at the U.S.-Mexico border crossing in Tecate, according to CBP.
Border Patrol agents detained the drivers and passengers in the two recent suspected smuggling attempts and turned them over to Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services for further investigation.
The confiscated animals are under quarantine by U.S. Department of Agriculture Veterinary Services to ensure they are not carrying any avian diseases such as bird flu.
This article by Clara Harter was first published by The LA Times on 15 May 2025. Lead Image: A parrot peruses the scene in La Jolla. (Penny Wilkes).
Wildlife in catastrophic decline
The 73% decline in vertebrate wildlife populations during the last 50 years (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish), is primarily driven by human activities that threaten biodiversity.
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