In less than five months, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DRNA) has captured or received over 1,000 birds, mammals, and reptiles at its Exotic Species Detention Center in Cambalache, Arecibo, revealing a growing illegal market for imported animals that the government is still trying to figure out how to stop.

DRNA Secretary Waldemar Quiles acknowledged that the main challenge in addressing the importation of these species is that many people have been “very effective” at keeping their illicit businesses under the radar.

“The biggest setback we have is how effective these organizations are at importing animals below the radar. [...] We depend on complaints or confidential tips to begin an investigation,” Quiles said in an interview with El Nuevo Día.

The species that arrived at the Cambalache Center between July 1 and November 21, 2025 include 48 sugar gliders, three geckos, seven primates, a long-neck monitor lizard, 144 parrots of four different species, and over 800 boas and pythons.

Quiles explained that many of these exotic species arrive through private courier services as overnight shipments. “They put the animals in a box and give them something to make them sleep. The animals don’t make noise when they get here. They get distributed, and no one sees them,” he noted.

Beyond the challenge of transactions going unnoticed, enforcement operations to uphold public policy on exotic animals have also encountered obstacles. Investigations, led by the DRNA’s Rangers Corps, require months of undercover work to gather reliable information about what they will find.

The secretary admitted that, at times, they arrive to intervene in businesses that are closed on the day of the operation. “If we get to a place that is supposed to be open, and the intervention depends on the establishment being open, then the intervention can’t proceed,” he said, emphasizing that they have had other successful operations.

When asked how people seem to learn about these confidential operations ahead of time, Quiles responded:

“When you have a very, very lucrative business that is illegal, you, as someone living outside the bounds of law and order, are obviously going to find ways to find out what's happening, how it’s happening, and when it’s happening.”

He believes it is “unlikely, but not impossible” that people within the DRNA might leak information to sabotage the operations.

A million-dollar market

To illustrate the scale of the illicit exotic-animal trade, the DRNA secretary stated:

“It’s an activity that generates millions of dollars every year and, after drugs and weapons, it is the third-largest illegal trafficking source in Puerto Rico.”

Although he did not provide precise figures on the economic impact of this industry on the archipelago, he noted that during a Rangers Corps operation in Sabana Grande, authorities seized 116 ringneck parrots, each valued between $2,500 and $3,000.

“Usually, people buy them because of a ‘craze,’ and then end up releasing them. For example, in the case of birds, these ringnecks compete with endemic animals—species native to our island. They enter our ecological system and compete for food and habitat, displacing local species,” Quiles warned, adding that “exotic birds” are currently the trend.

Beyond ecological impacts, Quiles highlighted the fiscal consequences, since these illicit transactions do not generate tax revenue for the government.

After the operation, the birds were taken to Cambalache. In November, the individual involved was charged with a misdemeanor under Article 6(c) of the New Wildlife Act (Law 241-1999), which penalizes:

“introducing, importing, possessing, breeding, buying, selling, exchanging, transporting, or exporting exotic, harmful, or poisonous species without prior permission from the secretary or with an expired permit.”

Quiles asserted that they have sufficient personnel and equipment to address complaints and tips regarding exotic animals. He added that municipal emergency management offices have also been trained and have become allies in responding to this species crisis.

Legal exotic species

Although many exotic species are illegal in Puerto Rico, DRNA Regulation 6765 includes a list of “exotic species of lower risk eligible for importation without a permit.” Among them is the ball python.

Researcher and founder of Proyecto Coquí, Rafael Joglar, explained that the decision to include this type of python was made around four decades ago. At the time, while serving as a scientific advisor to DRNA, he warned:

“Under no circumstances should a snake be legalized in Puerto Rico because it would create problems.”

“Back then, the DRNA gave in to pressure from pet stores and legalized a species that was thought would not escape or become problematic—the ball python. But now ball pythons are everywhere, and they’ve been used as cover for other species that are now everywhere in Puerto Rico,” Joglar added.

Currently, the Cambalache Center houses about twenty ball pythons. They can also be purchased at pet stores, and the DRNA included this species among those that can be hunted, under Administrative Order 2024-005, after declaring it an “invasive species.”

Exotic species can become invasive when they manage to adapt to the new ecosystem, reproduce, and displace endemic species.

El Nuevo Día asked the DRNA secretary how they could allow hunting these pythons and classify them as “invasive” while still permitting their importation and sale. Quiles responded that the agency’s more than 200 regulations are under review and that, once completed:

“those inconsistencies will disappear.”

When asked if they would remove these species from the list of permitted exotic animals, he replied:

“Yes, we could get to that point—perhaps species currently allowed but causing problems could end up being reviewed and removed from the list.”

Quiles acknowledged the existence of pet shops operating “outside the law,” but could not estimate how many engage in illegal sales of exotic animals.

Joglar believes that:

“the pet market is directly responsible for many species—if not the majority—of invasive species in Puerto Rico.”

The retired professor noted that Puerto Rican rivers are home to nine native fish species, compared to 39 invasive ones. For birds, there are 371 native species and 35 to 50 invasive.

Education and collaboration are urgent

For herpetologist and ecologist Adolfo Rodríguez, it is essential to establish a unified conversation among community groups, scientists, and the government so that responses to invasive-species issues are not fragmented.

He also urged expanding the conversation beyond reptiles to include mongooses, feral cats, and dogs, which also affect native ecosystems.

Joglar emphasized the need for education, especially so people can identify which species are endemic and which are invasive. He noted that some Puerto Rican snakes can be confused with invasive ones, leading to accidental hunting of protected species due to lack of knowledge.

He also stressed the need for legislation to curb the entry of exotic species. In the absence of a moratorium, Rodríguez believes people must be educated so they simply do not buy these animals.

“The important part is education—understanding that, as citizens and proud Puerto Ricans who want to protect what surrounds us [...] we must recognize that these species can, in the short or long term, pose problems for us because they will affect our own native species,” he concluded.