Wildlife trafficking is a multibillion-dollar business involving the unlawful harvest and trade of thousands of animals and plants. One such type of trade is for songbird singing competitions, a sport of “racing” male seed-finches, seedeaters and other species that is popular in the Caribbean, Guiana Shield of South America and countries with communities from these regions, including the U.S. While this legal, cultural practice is celebrated as a source of national pride in some countries, international trafficking is threatening 15 species of songbirds as well as national security and public health across the Americas and Europe. In 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service launched the Species Conservation Catalyst Fund on Songbird Trade, a new accelerator-model financial assistance initiative to reduce the illegal, unsustainable trade of songbirds in this region. Through cross-disciplinary strategic planning, the Service developed a strategy to address supply and demand dynamics and build law enforcement capacity to combat songbird trafficking. The Service recently invested $3.7 million in six projects collaborating across the trade chain to reduce trafficking of songbirds through mapping the drivers and actors involved in trade, addressing health risks for birds and people, strengthening law enforcement capacity and launching behavior change campaigns. Through a strategic, collaborative and socio-ecological approach, the Service and its partners hope to facilitate legal, sustainable trade that enables songbirds to sing freely in the wild once more.