Seal sporrans

[Wompet]

Those may be the species listed by USFWS, but under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (is it any wonder we just say "CITES"?), all members of the genus Arctocephalus are in Appendix II:

Appendix II includes species not necessarily threatened with extinction, but in which trade must be controlled in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival. The Conference of the Parties (CoP), which is the supreme decision-making body of the Convention and comprises all its member States, has agreed in Resolution Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP14) on a set of biological and trade criteria to help determine whether a species should be included in Appendices I or II. At each regular meeting of the CoP, Parties submit proposals based on those criteria to amend these two Appendices. Those amendment proposals are discussed and then submitted to a vote. The Convention also allows for amendments by a postal procedure between meetings of the CoP (see Article XV, paragraph 2, of the Convention), but this procedure is rarely used.

Appendix-II specimens

1. An export permit or re-export certificate issued by the Management Authority of the State of export or re-export is required.
   
   An export permit may be issued only if the specimen was legally obtained and if the export will not be detrimental to the survival of the species.
   
   A re-export certificate may be issued only if the specimen was imported in accordance with the Convention.
2. In the case of a live animal or plant, it must be prepared and shipped to minimize any risk of injury, damage to health or cruel treatment.
3. No import permit is needed unless required by national law.

In the case of specimens introduced from the sea, a certificate has to be issued by the Management Authority of the State into which the specimens are being brought, for species listed in Appendix I or II. For further information, see the text of the Convention, Article III, paragraph 5 and Article IV, paragraph 6.


Short version - yes, fur seals and their products may be legally imported if they have the proper CITES documentation - export permit issued by Canada (in this case) and USFWS import permit. These items are also physically inspected by USFWS inspectors to confirm that species of origin matches what is on the documents.
US Customs is primarily concerned with whether the item is properly invoiced and manifested, and all duties due have been paid.

Even shorter version - their sporrans may be "approved by US Customs," but if USFWS isn't satisfied they're not coming in.

Gary
Customs & Border Protection, Agriculture Quarantine Inspections

[Dukeof Kircaldy]

Thanks Wompet, that's the best info so far.

For those not in the know, The genus Arctocephalus consists of eight of the nine species of fur seal. On the other hand, there are other genus of seals:
* Genus Arctocephalus
* Genus Callorhinus
* Genus Eumetopias
* Genus Neophoca
* Genus Otaria
* Genus Phocarctos
* Genus Zalophus

along with the family Phocidae: true seals

One of these sporrans is made with Phoca vitulina which is not in the CITES database

Anyway, this is from a service that expedites imports:

* Importers are responsible for knowing the contents of the products they import. U. S. Fish and Wildlife requires the scientific name (Genus and Species) and the Country of Origin (C/O) for all wildlife contained in medicines or parts of such wildlife. With this information, importers can contact their local U. S. Fish and Wildlife office of law enforcement with questions concerning prohibited wildlife and document requirements. For information contact the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Law Enforcement at 310-328-6307.

The following import procedures and guidelines will be followed at the Port of Los Angeles regarding the clearance of fish and wildlife imports.

U. S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE ENTRY PACKAGE:

The entry package must include the following documents for shipments clearing U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service at the Port of Los Angeles.

* Import Declaration Form 3-177 (1 original and 3 copies)
* All ORIGINAL foreign export permits
* Copy of U. S. Customs Form 3461, if applicable
* Copy of air waybill or bill of lading
* Copy of commercial invoices and packing list
* Copy of any other pertinent documents (APHIS permits, health certification, etc.)
* Inspection Fee check payable to DOI, U. S. Fish and wildlife Service or credit card may be used by the required Import/Export licensee. The entry package should be presented to the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service at 370 Amapola Ave., Suite 114, Torrance, CA. Entries are accepted Monday thru Friday from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. Tel: 310-328-6307 Fax: 310-328-6399

Which again gets back to my question, is the sporran importable if the seal comes from a species that is not in the CITES database?

Also, the same question if the sporran is coming from Scotland which doesn't have any CITES listed seals? For that matter the EU (Britain being a part of the EU) seems to have a ban on importing seal products.

Although as Wompet points out, which I did as well, if USFWS decides that the seal is not importable, then it is not importable.

Another reiteration on what Wompet just said, CITES can cause a lot of paperwork and headache.

[JS Sanders]

<< Gary - Customs & Border Protection, Agriculture Quarantine Inspections >>

Looks like we found our go-to guy for importation questions.

Slan,
steve

[ThistleDown]

Don't you just love this forum? Amazing knowledge and wonderful resources to call upon.

[Wompet]

For those not in the know, The genus Arctocephalus consists of eight of the nine species of fur seal. On the other hand, there are other genus of seals:
* Genus Arctocephalus fur seals - CITES I & II
* Genus Callorhinus fur seals - non-CITES
* Genus Eumetopias
* Genus Neophoca
* Genus Otaria
* Genus Phocarctos
* Genus Zalophus

along with the family Phocidae: true seals

One of these sporrans is made with Phoca vitulina which is not in the CITES database
...
Which again gets back to my question, is the sporran importable if the seal comes from a species that is not in the CITES database?

Also, the same question if the sporran is coming from Scotland which doesn't have any CITES listed seals? For that matter the EU (Britain being a part of the EU) seems to have a ban on importing seal products.

Phoca vitulina can be harvested legally in the UK (Conservation of Seals Act, 1970) and they are not considered endangered by the USFWS, so legal importation should be possible.

Just taking a quick look at the entry package:

The entry package must include the following documents for shipments clearing U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service at the Port of Los Angeles.

* Import Declaration Form 3-177 (1 original and 3 copies) These shouldn't be necessary for a personal shipment.
* All ORIGINAL foreign export permits The shipper ought to provide a copy of this.
* Copy of U. S. Customs Form 3461, if applicable The Royal Mail customs declaration on the outside of the package should be sufficient.
* Copy of air waybill or bill of lading Yes
* Copy of commercial invoices and packing list Yes
* Copy of any other pertinent documents (APHIS permits, health certification, etc.) The shipper must certify that the skin came from a non-endangered, legally harvested and exported animal (identified in binomial nomenclature to species).
* Inspection Fee check payable to DOI, U. S. Fish and wildlife Service or credit card may be used by the required Import/Export licensee. The entry package should be presented to the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service $90 USD, if collected

I think that would do it, though there are a few too many "should"s in there for my personal comfort level.