Officials from the Guyana Wildlife Authority told Stabroek Business last month that they had sent a Non-Detrimental Finding to CITES, in support of their plans to export bottlenose dolphins.

"The Secretariat is aware of proposed trade in live bottlenose dolphins from Guyana and is reviewing supporting documentation provided by the government," says the March 5 statement.

Guyana does not have to gain permission from CITES to trade in dolphins, but as a signatory to the CITES convention, must do a Non-Detrimental Finding(NDF) to show that the trade is not harmful to the animal population being traded. The Convention has 163 member countries.

The CITES statement titled 'Trade in live dolphins' explained that trade in bottlenose dolphins and animals of other species listed in Appendix II to the Convention is allowed under certain conditions. That is, the export must not be detrimental to the survival of the species; the animals must have been legally obtained and exported; and shipments must be in accordance with the IATA Live Animal Regulations.

The Convention, contains no specifications with regard to the use and housing of the animals in the importing country, which is - unlike for Appendix-I species - not required to issue an import permit, according to the statement.

Local authorities have stated that they are awaiting a response from CITES before they begin any dolphin trade.

Last week Khalawan, director of the Guyana Wildlife Division explained that the body is willing to provide any clarifications to the study if requested by CITES. Khalawan said he would not abandon the idea of trading in dolphins based solely on criticism.

Some local wildlife exporters are against the dolphin trade since they fear that Guyana will be criticised internationally for the trade thereby jeopardising other wildlife exports.

Local conservationists and a recognised local veterinarian have called on wildlife authorities in recent media reports to release further information on the NDF, in support of the dolphin trade. This was followed by a letter from the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) headquarters in London to CITES, regarding Guyana's plans to export bottlenose dolphins.

Wildlife authorities have said that the NDF showed that Guyana has less than 10,000 dolphins but argue that this is sufficient for trade. Other details on the study were not released and wildlife authorities have said that further information on the study would be given after CITES sends a response.

CITES itself cannot tell a country not to take part in a particular animal trade but can address concerns by non-governmental groups and governments on such trades.

The secretariat continues to investigate trade in live bottlenose dolphins between the Solomon Islands and Mexico, statement said.

The Secretariat also noted that "unfortunately, certain of the statements made in the media and in correspondence to the Secretariat contain allegations and interpretations of the Convention that are clearly inaccurate and sometimes misleading."

The CITES Secretary-General, Willem Wijnstekers, said:

"I recognise that many people are against trade in live animals and particularly against trade in live marine mammals for a variety of reasons.

That is one reason why we are particularly alert to possible cases of illegal trade and (also for Appendix II species) follow up allegations. One should realise, however, that when trade is legal, the decision on whether it takes place is not taken by the CITES Secretariat...."