Q: Why aren't any White-tailed Black-Cockatoo feathers available to export outside of Australia?
A: White-tailed Black-Cockatoos are an endangered species. Under Australian Federal law, their feathers cannot be exported due to this reason. Even though all the White-tailed Black-Cockatoo feathers we stock are naturally moulted feathers from legally held captive birds, the law in Australia doesn't differentiate and therefore the Australian Federal Government will not allow feathers from this species to be added to our export licensing. No one in Australia can get licensed to commercially export feathers from this species.
Q: Why are there Red-tailed Black Cockatoo and Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo feathers that can be exported outside of Australia, while others from these species cannot be exported?
A: This is due to supplier agreements and complex reasons related to licensing and the law.
Q: Why are there feathers from Macaws and other protected Parrots that can be exported outside of Australia, while others from these species cannot be exported?
A: Supplier agreements, so same as the answer above - however feathers from a few species such as the Scarlet Macaw, Red-fronted Macaw, African Grey Parrot and Moluccan Cockatoo can never be exported as they are CITES Appendix I listed, so banned from commercial export worldwide.
Q: Why can't any Peregrine Falcon feathers be shipped outside of Australia?
A: The Peregrine Falcon is a CITES Appendix I listed Raptor species and due to this it isn't possible to include their moulted feathers on our export licensing. Their feathers are banned from international trade, so for now we can only ship them within Australia. During the CITES Conference in Johannesburg (CoP17) there was a good argument to put the Peregrine Falcon back to a CITES Appendix II level, which would then make their feathers legal for export (with a CITES Permit of course) - but it didn't happen. There is a likelihood that the Peregrine Falcon status will change to Appendix II in the future and if that happens then we will eventually be able to ship Peregrine Falcon feathers outside of Australia.
Q: How do I know that feathers I buy from FeatherExchange.com are humanely sourced?
A: All feathers we export include a copy of the CITES export certificate and the original CITES export permit. The customer will receive these documents with the shipment. To be able to get CITES licensed in the first place meant that the Australian Federal Government had do its own investigations and be satisfied that all of the State licensing was in place and that we will always have solid evidence that every feather was sourced legally and humanely. Australia has the reputation of having the strictest laws in the world when it comes to wildlife trading, including wildlife parts - such as feathers. When you buy feathers from FeatherExchange.com you are always receiving 100% legally and humanely sourced feathers. It's not a maybe or a most likely... but it's a definite.
