This post details the process I used to apply for a CITES export permit with the US Fish and Wildlife management authority.

Application type

For ESA or Appendix I species use the 3-200-37e: Import/Export/Re-Export of Biological Specimens (CITES/ESA) for Scientific Research.

Information on this application can be found here

For non-ESA or Appendix II/III species use the 3-200-29: Export/Re-export of Wildlife Samples and/or Biomedical Samples (CITES).

Information on this application can be found here

View the CITES appendices here

Search for species and find appendix information on Species+

Step 1: Prepare application and supporting documents

This application requires information on the research proposal, species and sample lists, team qualifications, and justification for sampling and export.

First, download the application form and section E here.

Section A:

• Fill out your personal information including name, email, DOB, and phone number

Section B:

• You can also fill out instition information, which can exempt you from the application fee.
• For example, I added URI to boxes 1a and 1b and added information for myself as the primary contact.

Section C:

• I then added the physical address of our department at URI

Section D:

• Add your date and signature

Section E:

• This section requires supplemental documentation.
• First, add the location for the permit to be mailed (although it should also be provided electronically) and your information for the primary point of contact.
• Add “export” as the proposed activity
• Add the current location of the samples (for example, I put the address for HIMB in Hawaii)
• Add information for the person who will be exporting the samples. I put information for the person who will physically transport the samples, which was not myself.
• Next, fill out the table for sample information. Include relevant information including species name, date of collection, source of collection, number of samples, biological material in each sample, and the packaging. Then add the total number of samples in the shipment.
• Then, in a new word document, prepare the supplemental information.

Section E supplemental information:

• First, for each biological sample, provide the species information and location, collectors, methods, and efforts to use captive species. See my response below:

“5. Method of collection: In all research activities, we have optimized our sampling to minimize impact on the natural population of corals in Hawaii. Samples are taken as biopsies that do not harm or cause mortality to coral colonies using small clippers. Gamete and embryo samples will be collected in situ from adult colonies on the reef using floating nets that do not cause harm or impact the health of reproducing coral colonies. Adult colonies will not be moved or removed from the reef during this research. Gametes collected in the floating nets will then be taken to the laboratory at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology for fertilization and rearing to the larval stage. In situ samples are collected by boat and snorkel in Kaneohe Bay on patch and fringing reefs as permitted by the Hawaii Department of Aquatic Resources (permit attached). Samples of developing embryos and larvae and coral biopsies will be collected by freezing or preservation for transport and subsequent analysis. Further method details are described below.”

“7. Efforts to use captive species: Reproductive colonies of this species is not held in captivity and are not able to reproduce when held in captivity. Therefore, collection of gametes and larvae in this research is conducted by collecting spawned gametes from wild coral colonies on the reef. Gametes will be collected from colonies on the reef at the study location using methods that do not cause harm or require the coral colonies to be removed from the reef (i.e., gamete capture using a floating net). Once gametes are collected, fertilization and embryo rearing to larval stages will be conducted in captivity in the laboratory.”

• Describe the purpose of the scientific research and include: A copy of proposal, information on sampling methods, IACUC (if applicable), peer reviewed research, and an explanation if research has been previously conducted. For this question, I wrote a paragraph summary for each part. For example, here is my summary as an example:

“This research is part of a funded National Science Foundation Ocean Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowship awarded to PI Dr. Ariana Huffmyer (University of Rhode Island; award no. OCE-PRF 2205966) entitled, “Investigating ontogenetic shifts in microbe-derived nutrition in reef building corals”. The NSF proposal and award notice letters are attached to this application. A summary of the research purpose, objectives, and methods for this project are included below:”

“Purpose and study question Anthropogenic climate change is threatening the persistence of tropical coral reefs by accelerating coral loss through habitat destruction, disease, and thermal bleaching. To maintain reefs under climate change and the critical ecosystem services they provide, successful reproduction and recruitment of new coral offspring are vital. Corals depend on the delicate nutritional relationship with their endosymbiotic algae (Symbiodiniaceae) for their energetic needs to grow, calcify, and reproduce (Muscatine and Porter 1977; Roth 2014). This symbiosis begins in early life history when coral larvae acquire symbionts either from the environment or from their parents. However, the early stages of this symbiosis are prone to disruption and damage due to marine heatwaves, which can ultimately cause mortality of coral recruits (Hughes et al. 2019). The algal symbiont plays an important role in coral resilience and resistance to stress and bleaching (Palacio-Castro et al. 2023; Cunning and Baker 2020). For example, on Hawaiian reefs, Montipora capitata corals that host Cladocopium sp. symbionts are more sensitive to stress and bleach more frequently than those hosting Durusdinium sp. (Allen-Waller and Barott 2023; Dilworth et al. 2021). Reproductive adults of this species provide symbionts to their offspring through the gametes (vertical transmission) with nutritional exchange beginning during the swimming larval stage (Huffmyer et al. 2023). Therefore, inheritance of resilient symbionts in this species could provide a mechanism to increase larval thermal performance and survival, but this has not yet been tested. Therefore, our study will address the question, “How does symbiont community identity impact larval performance and metabolism under thermal stress?” This research will provide critical information on the role of the symbiont in driving larval performance and survival under marine heatwave conditions. This work will directly inform conservation strategies by identifying optimal host-symbiont pairings and identifying developmental windows that are sensitive to thermal stress conditions. We are conducting this research in collaboration with the Coral Resilience Lab at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) in Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Hawaii (https://www.coralresiliencelab.com/) and the results of this work will be directly integrated into local research programs.”

“Objectives There are two research objectives for this study. 1) Characterize thermal performance curves for coral larvae with either Cladocopium sp. (thermally sensitive) or Durusdinium sp. (thermally tolerant) symbiont species; and 2) Characterize metabolic response of coral larvae with either Cladocopium sp. (thermally sensitive) or Durusdinium sp. (thermally tolerant) symbiont species to ambient, mild, and high temperature stress using transcriptomic, metabolomic, and lipidomic approaches.”

“Methods To address our study question, we will collect and rear larvae from coral parents that host either Cladocopium sp. (thermally sensitive) or Durusdinium sp. (thermally tolerant) symbiont species and transfer these symbionts to their offspring. Researchers at the Coral Resilience Lab at HIMB have identified parent colonies with each symbiont species (N=16 parent colonies). During the spawning period (1-3 nights after the new moon) we will place floating nets above each parent colony and allow the colony to spawn, releasing gametes (egg-sperm bundles) that will be collected in the nets. After spawning is completed, the nets will be removed and the gametes will be transported to the laboratory for fertilization. Gametes will then be pooled within parent groups of each symbiont type and allowed to fertilize (Hancock et al. 2021). Embryos will then be reared in 20 L flow through conical rearing vessels supplied with ambient temperature filtered seawater (n=3 tanks per symbiont type) for 4-7 days until reaching the swimming larval stage. Symbiont species in the eggs and larvae will be confirmed by preservation in an RNA/DNA buffer (RNA/DNA shield) and subsequent DNA sequencing (ITS2 sequencing; n=75 eggs/larvae per symbiont type) conducted at the University of Rhode Island). Once embryos have reached the larval stage, we will conduct two sets of experiments repeated three times over a 1 week period to address each of our two study objectives (above).”

“First, we will characterize thermal performance curves (TPC) for coral larvae with either Cladocopium sp. (thermally sensitive) or Durusdinium sp. (thermally tolerant) symbiont species. Coral larvae (N=1,500 larvae) will be exposed to a range of temperature conditions (10°C-40°C) in benchtop incubators. At each temperature, we will measure coral respiration and photosynthesis rates (microplate respirometry) as well as photochemical properties (pulse-amplitude fluorometry). This approach will allow us to test how symbiont species affect thermal performance of the coral host and the algal symbiont. These measurements will be conducted on live larvae over short incubation periods that will not cause larval mortality. These measurements will be repeated three times over the course of a one-week period. Larvae will not be destructively sampled to achieve this objective.”

“Second, we will characterize metabolic responses of coral larvae with either Cladocopium sp. (thermally sensitive) or Durusdinium sp. (thermally tolerant) symbiont species under ambient, mild (+3°C), and high temperature (+6°C) stress using transcriptomic, metabolomic, and lipidomic approaches. Pools of 100 larvae will be incubated in a water bath contained in 50 mL tubes under ambient light conditions for 4-5 hours. Following the incubation period, larvae will be sampled for either 1) lipidomics and metabolomics (N=108 samples; N=10,800 larvae) or 2) transcriptomics (N=108 samples; N=5,400 larvae). Larvae sampled for lipidomics and metabolomics will be snap frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80°C and will be exported to Sydney, Australia for analyses. Larvae sampled for transcriptomics will be preserved in an RNA/DNA buffer (RNA/DNA shield) and subsequently processed at the University of Rhode Island for RNA sequencing (TagSeq). In addition, small biopsies (1cm x 1cm) will be incubated in the same conditions to allow for comparison between larval and adult lipid and metabolomic responses (N=108 biopsies). We expect the parent colonies (N=16) to produce >10 million larvae during this reproductive event, and therefore our sampling for scientific research represents <0.15% of larval output. The remaining larvae will be settled for further restoration and research conducted at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology.”

“The field and experimental portion of this research will be conducted at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology from June 15, 2023 – July 4, 2023. Samples will be exported to the University of Technology Sydney at the end of this field research period. Subsequent sample processing and data analysis will occur for the remainder of 2023 at researcher’s academic institutions (transcriptomic analysis at the University of Rhode Island; lipid and metabolomic analyses at the University of Technology Sydney).”

“All samples will be collected by Huffmyer, Matthews, Ashey, and Putnam as the research team for this work. In all research activities, we have optimized our sampling to minimize impact on the natural population of corals in Hawaii. Samples from coral colonies are taken as small biopsies that do not harm or cause mortality to coral colonies using small clippers. Gamete samples will be collected in situ from adult colonies on the reef using floating nets that do not cause harm or impact the health of reproducing coral colonies. Adult colonies will not be moved or removed from the reef during this research. Gametes collected in the floating nets will then be taken to the laboratory at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology for fertilization and rearing to the larval stage and subsequently sampled. In situ samples are collected by boat and snorkel in Kaneohe Bay on patch and fringing reefs as permitted by the Hawaii Department of Aquatic Resources (approved permit SAP-2024-24 attached to this application). Samples of developing embryos and larvae and coral biopsies will be collected by freezing in liquid nitrogen or preservation (RNA/DNA shield) for transport and subsequent analysis. Due to this sampling, there will be no transport of live material and there is no risk of disease spread as a result of export.”

“This research investigates hypotheses and a line of inquiry that has not been addressed in previous research. This research complements and strengthens a wide diversity and collaborative network of researchers working to understand how climate change driven marine heat waves impact the reproduction and recruitment of corals that is required to maintain and replenish reefs. Specifically, this research will increase our understanding of the impacts of marine heatwaves on coral larvae that host different species of algal symbionts. Some species of algal symbionts are more tolerant to heat stress and can confer this resilience to the coral animal. However, it is not known how algal species impact the metabolic resilience and thermal performance at the larval life stage, which we will investigate in this work. As climate change intensifies, it becomes increasingly important that coral offspring survive, recruit to the reef, and grow to become reproductive adults. This research will directly improve our knowledge of coral reproduction and recruitment by identifying which algal symbiont species provides the greatest nutritional and performance advantages in the larval life stage.”

• Describe how the research advances conservation of the species. Here is my response:

“This research directly addresses a timely and critically important need to understand how climate change driven marine heat waves impact the survival and recruitment of coral offspring. As climate change intensifies, it is crucial that coral offspring survive and recruit to replenish reefs and maintain genetic diversity of coral populations. The coral study species in this work, Montipora capitata, is endemic to Northwest and Main Hawaiian Island reefs and represents an important reef-building species, particularly in Kaneohe Bay where this work is being conducted. These corals are dominant reef builders in lagoon and fringing reef sites throughout the archipelago, thus contributing substantially to ecosystem performance, value, and services. In the past decade, there have been three mass bleaching events in Hawaii (2014, 2015, 2019). To predict how Hawaii reefs will respond to future increases in the severity and frequency of bleaching, it is important to identify factors that contribute to resilience of key species and understand coral responses at the molecular and cellular levels. Further, the focus on coral reproduction allows us to examine corals not only within a generation, but across generations to test how susceptible the reproductive process and coral gametes and embryos are to environmental stress. This research directly addresses this need by investigating how symbiont species affect larval performance under temperature stress. This research is being conducted in collaboration with a local research group (Coral Resilience Lab, HIMB) that directly works to advance local conservation efforts and community outreach and education (more information at https://www.coralresiliencelab.com/). This research will inform the conservation of M. capitata in its native range through the following ways:”

“Identify which symbiont species provides higher thermal resilience, allowing conservation efforts to focus on corals that have the greatest potential for survival under thermal stress. Inform juvenile and recruit outplanting efforts by identifying which symbiont species confers the greatest thermal tolerance and metabolic performance in early life history. Provide knowledge on energy usage and metabolism under stress in larval stages, allowing coral propagation and nursery programs to provide rearing conditions and food sources that are best suited for larval survival under climate change. Provide metabolic and cellular indicators of early stages of bleaching and stress that can help researchers and practitioners monitor and predict bleaching in this species.”

“Our research team has demonstrated investment and commitment to reef conservation in Hawaii by advancing scientific knowledge that informs conservation efforts. Huffmyer has conducted research in Hawaii from 2014-present and Putnam has conducted research in Hawaii since 2008. Matthews (2020) and Ashey (2022) have also conducted previous work in Hawaii. A selected list of relevant scientific publications produced from our work in Hawaii is included below (team member names are in bold).”

• Specify whether this is a one time shipment or multiple shipments.
• Specify how and when the samples will be transported and who is transporting. I added my collaborators name and the flight they are planning to ship the samples on as baggage.

Section E documents to attach:

• CV for each person on the team
• Collection permits (I attached the approved DAR permit for Hawaii)
• Grant/funding agency award letters and funded proposal documents
• Tax exempt status letter for institution if applicable (I attached one for URI)
• Copy of import permit application (see Step 2)
• Any other relevant supporting documentation

Step 2: Submit import permit in foreign country

Next, submit an import permit to the foreign country where the samples will be sent to. For example, my collaborator submitted an import application to the Australian Government management authority.

It may be required to attach a copy of the export application for approval of an import permit.

Attach a copy of the import permit application to your export permit application in the next step.

Step 3: Submit export permit application online

Once you have the documents and application form prepared, create a log in following instructions found here for Fish and Wildlife. You MUST create an account at both ePermits and Login.gov with the same email address.

Then submit the application here.

You will fill out information from the application form, upload the supplemental documents, and submit!

Step 4: Update and recieve export and import permit approval

Once an import permit is issued, update the application online with the approved import permit and CITES number.

Submit the export permit information to the management authority of the country you are exporting to.

Contact FWS if you have not heard about the status of your application for a long period of time.

Ensure your import permit has time to be approved before export. Follow instructions from the respective county.

Step 5: Submit eDec and 48 hour notice form for export

The week before your departure (>48 hrs), fill out an eDeclaration (eDec form) in your account here.

eDec

• Create an account
• Click “new eDec”
• Enter port of clearance. If you can, depart (if you are taking the samples in baggage on a flight) from a designated port of clearance. If you cannot do a sample inspection at one of these sites, you will need to apply for a permit for inspection at an alternative site.
• Enter personal information, domestic, and foreign addresses.
• Enter species information and codes from your approved CITES permit.
• Submit

48 hr notice

If necessary, your port may require a 48 hr inspection notice for export. Call the port of export to ask for this information and file any relevant forms.

Step 6: Inspect and export sample

Conduct an inspection according to the instructions given to you by the export port. They will sign the original CITES permit, which you will take with you for the export. The import country will keep the original CITES permit and import permit.

Contact for questions

If you have questions, contact the USFW Management Authority at 800-358-2104 and ask to speak with a member of the biology team.

Contact your export port as well for information specific to your export.