Overexploitation of resources represents a major factor in biodiversity loss. The illegal capture and trade of wildlife species pose a serious threat to them. Algeria is a party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 1982, thereby joining the dynamics of wild fauna and flora protection. The list of wildlife species was last updated by Executive Decree No. 12-235 of 24 May 2012. In Algeria, songbirds are greatly appreciated as pet animals by pet enthusiasts. Unfortunately, habitat loss as a result of repeated forest fires in the Mediterranean region and the illegal capture of these birds cause severe damage to wild populations. The European goldfinch is the preferred species of bird enthusiasts because of its beautiful colours and its very particular singing abilities. Other species like the European serin ( Serinus serinus) are, however, used for breeding with the European goldfinch and thus the creation of hybrids. For the purposes of assessing both the impact on populations and the economic impact of the illegal capture and trade of wild birds, a survey has been conducted on the bird market held, on a weekly basis, in the city of Guelma. According to the results, between 3000 and 12,000 European goldfinches are caught every year and around 1200 are sold solely on this market. As far as the European serin is concerned, the capture is estimated at over 1000 birds. The economic impact of this activity only for the sale of recently caught animals is estimated at more than USD80,000 per year.

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Summary Since antiquity, the keeping of finches as pets has been common throughout the Mediterranean countries and it remains a widespread hobby to the present day. Since most finches are sourced from the wild this hobby can have implications for their conservation, especially for already imperilled species. We conducted a survey of 257 households in the city of Guelma, in the north-east of Algeria, and of 70 participants to a European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis show contest in Algiers, to understand the owners’ motives for keeping cage birds and find solutions to mitigate any negative effects on the trade. Keeping and showing finches in Algeria is a male-dominated hobby, especially for the 30–40 year age bracket. Our surveys indicate that almost 60% of households had a cage bird, with the European Goldfinch being the most popular species. With a mean of 0.75 goldfinches per household we estimate that in Guelma alone some 17,000 are kept in captivity. Between 70% and 90% of the owners indicated that their birds were indeed wild-sourced, and over 85% of them were aware of the protected status of the European Goldfinch in Algeria. Our findings underline the need for strict enforcement of existing laws and better targeted awareness campaigns to influence the behaviour of owners in order to reduce the demand for wild specimens.

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Wildlife crime refers to any environmental-related crime that involves illegal trade, smuggling, poaching, capture and collection of endangered species or protected wildlife (Brack & Hayman, 2002).