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Vantara partners with ACTP to reintroduce 41 Spix’s macaws in Brazil

Jan 30, 2025 04:24 PM IST

Reliance’s Vantara teamed up with ACTP to reintroduce 41 Spix’s macaws, once declared extinct in the wild, to their native habitat in Brazil's Caatinga biome.

Reliance’s Vantara, dedicated to restoring India’s wildlife through its conservation programmes, partnered with the Association for the Conservation of Threatened Parrots (ACTP) to reintroduce Spix's macaws (Cyanopsitta spixii) to Bahia, Brazil. This species of parrot, also known as the little blue macaw, was declared extinct in the wild in 2000. Now, Vantara’s affiliate, Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC), along with ACPT, has 41 little blue macaws rehabilitated to their native land. The group consisted of 23 females, 15 males and three unsexed juveniles who were transferred from ACTP’s breeding centre in Berlin, Germany on January 28.

Featured in the movie Rio, the Spix’s nacaws have been at the heart of the global conservation efforts.
Featured in the movie Rio, the Spix’s nacaws have been at the heart of the global conservation efforts.

Before the transfer, the birds underwent over 28 days of quarantine at a breeding facility in Berlin, along with thorough testing to ensure they were free from any diseases that could affect Brazil’s wild ecosystem. The group was selected based on their pedigree and health and transferred to a quarantine facility upon their arrival in Bahia. The transfer was supervised by two veterinarians and a keeper from ACTP, alongside an expert team from Vantara’s GZRRC. To ensure a smooth process, border police and federal customs established a temporary office at the airport for swift clearance. Special vehicles were arranged for the ground transportation of both the birds and accompanying staff.

This marks a crucial step in the global Reintroduction Programme, with Vantara providing expertise and resources to ACTP, playing a key role in the revival of this extinct-in-the-wild species in Brazil’s Caatinga biome. The programme has already seen notable successes, including the reintroduction of 20 Spix’s macaws in 2022, which led to the first wild-born chicks in over two decades. In 2019, a dedicated Release Centre was set up in Brazil, followed by the arrival of 52 birds from Germany and Belgium in 2020.

Martin Guth, the founder of ACTP, said, “On behalf of ACTP, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to Mr. Anant Ambani and Vantara for their remarkable contribution to the Spix’s Macaws Reintroduction Project. In addition to their generous financial support, the expertise that Vantara shared with us has been invaluable in successfully breeding this extinct-in-the-wild species. Vantara’s unwavering dedication to biodiversity restoration and endangered species protection, coupled with their passion, resources, and collaborative approach, has been pivotal to the success of this initiative. This partnership exemplifies the power of a shared vision and commitment, and we hope it will inspire conservation efforts worldwide. We look forward to continuing our work together to save as many endangered species as possible in partnership with Vantara.”

Featured in the movie Rio, the little blue macaws have been at the heart of the global conservation efforts by private orgaisations such as GZRRC and ACTP and the Brazilian government. Together, they are working to rebuild the species' population in captivity and reintroduce it into the wild.

Vantara is also actively involved in conservation efforts to protect India’s rich wildlife. Its initiatives focus on reintroducing captive-bred rhinos into secure habitats, supporting Asiatic lion populations through breeding and habitat restoration, and contributing to the return of cheetahs to Indian forests through a structured breeding programme. The reintroduction of the Spix’s macaw highlights Vantara’s dedication to species conservation and ecosystem restoration.

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