San Diego – U.S. Customs and Border
Protection officials are advising hunters who may travel to Mexico for dove or
quail hunting of new requirements for their game fowl prior to their return to
the United States at a port of entry.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
Office of Veterinary Services has implemented this new requirement in response
to the recent confirmation of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza at commercial
poultry production facilities in Mexico. The purpose of these new requirements
is to prevent further spread of this virus and to protect U.S. poultry.
Fresh, uncooked, hunter-harvested game
bird carcasses brought from Mexico for human consumption are prohibited. If the
carcass for human consumption has a fully-cooked appearance, as determined by
CBP, it may be allowed. These carcasses are different from hunter-harvested
carcasses that are brought as trophies from Mexico.
Hunters wishing to import trophy game
fowl taken during a hunting trip in Mexico must have an approved import permit
for the birds from USDA’s Office of Veterinary Services. A bulletin advising of
the import permit requirement for avian trophies from Mexico can be found at
the following link.
Hunters should declare all game fowl to
CBP upon their arrival at a U.S. port of entry and present the USDA Veterinary
Services import permit. They are also subject to verification of the import
documentation by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officer.
For information on Fish and Wildlife
Service requirements for bringing game birds from Mexico, please click on the
attached link.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged
with the management, control, and protection of our Nation's borders at and
between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and
terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
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