(2) by amending subsection (e) to read as follows: “(e) Captive wildlife offense.— “(1) IN GENERAL.—It is unlawful for any person to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce, or in a manner substantially affecting interstate or foreign commerce, or to breed or possess, any live animal of any prohibited wildlife species.

“(a) Breed.—The term ‘breed’ means to facilitate propagation or reproduction (whether intentionally or negligently), or to fail to prevent propagation or reproduction”.

The United States is a party to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which was designed to protect species of wild fauna and flora against overexploitation through international trade.

Federal control of the intrastate private possession and breeding of prohibited wildlife species is essential to the effective control of the interstate incidents of traffic in prohibited wildlife species.

It is exceedingly difficult to distinguish between prohibited wildlife species that are possessed, bred, sold, or transported in interstate commerce from those that have not been.

Prohibited wildlife species in private possession, or distributed intrastate, are fungible commodities that cannot be differentiated, in terms of control, from prohibited wildlife species possessed or distributed interstate.

Private possession and breeding of prohibited wildlife species contributes to the interstate traffic in those species and may contribute to illegal international wildlife trade.

Private possession and breeding of prohibited wildlife species have a substantial and direct effect on interstate commerce because prohibited wildlife species are frequently bred and possessed to be used in public exhibition or for sale or transfer of ownership in the exotic pet trade, and are often transported in interstate commerce for these purposes.