Border Officials Confiscate Two Bird Carcasses Encased in Cement Statues

Border officials in Tenessee found bird carcasses encased in cement statues earlier this month, authorities announced in a statement this week.

The birds were shipped from Mexico City and en route to Odessa, Texas. They were intercepted in Memphis by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists. The shipment contained two dead birds and suspected Elaeis Guineensis seed or African Oil Palm seeds.

The package was described as a gift to a cousin “with crafts,” CBP said.

The Memphis Area Port Director, Michael Johnson, said that he believes the types of ‘crafts’ are belief-based.

“The Yoruba, Santería or Osha religions use them, and are meant for luck, or for curses. The cement statues were decorated with puka shells and contained the palm seeds and the carcasses.”

“Whether the shipments make sense or not, we vigilantly intercept all contraband and other prohibited items to safeguard the American public,” he said in a statement. “Hopefully our steam sterilization cleared away any bad spirits they may have drawn in.”

When it was X-rayed, they found that the shipment contained three cement statues containing organic material inside. They found rotted bird carcasses and seeds in two of them.

According to officials, the carcasses present a risk because they could introduce diseases such as avian influenza. They used steam sterilization on the birds and seeds.

The wildlife trade and the animal black market are booming industries that must be cracked down on to protect these species. Airports and shipping services are popular smuggling locations which is why it is so important to keep a close watch.

Whether the smuggling involves shark fins, ivory, or live insects, it needs to be intercepted and stopped to catch these wildlife traders.

Related Content:

• Queens Man Charged With Smuggling Burmese Pythons Across U.S. Canada Border
• 109 Live Wild Animals Found in Luggage at Airport in Bangkok
• Palestinian Man and Israeli Animal Rights Group Perform Cross-Border Parrot Rescue
• 51 Endangered Star Tortoises Saved From Smugglers and Released in the Wild!
• More Than 300 Smuggled Insects Found at El Dorado International Airport
• Former Animal Trafficker Describes How Orangutans are Smuggled

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
• Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take the initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that are raising awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
• Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
• Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
• Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
• Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your own food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!