Monkeys and other primates, like lemurs and lorises, might not be the most common pets we find in households across the U.S., but the trade widespread and it’s causing both suffering for them, and posing dangers to us. According to the Animal Welfare Institute, it’s conservatively estimated that there are somewhere in the neighborhood of […]
Tag: pet trade
POLL: Should big cats be protected from the exotic pet trade?
Animal advocates are applauding members of Congress for reintroducing legislation that would protect both us and big cats by banning private ownership. It’s currently estimated that there are more than 10,000 big cats being kept as pets or in roadside zoos in the U.S., but no one knows exactly where they are or who owns […]
POLL: Should China impose strict regulations on bird poaching?
Bird poaching – for meat or for the pet trade – has become a silent epidemic across China, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of migratory birds each year. Gu Xuan, a young conservationist, is determined to break this cycle of death and destruction, and set the birds free. This video was first […]
‘Death by a thousand holes’: Scientists race to avert a salamander crisis
Any day now. That’s when Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal), the “salamander-eating” fungus, is expected to arrive in the United States, home to more than a third of the world’s species of these slippery amphibians.It all began in 2008, when Bsal traveledsome through the pet trade from Asia to northern Europe. There, it escaped into the wild […]
Shocking Investigation Exposes the Black Market for Jaguars
Jaguars in South America are already facing a number of threats to their survival, but poaching as one of them has largely gone under the radar until now. An undercover investigation conducted by World Animal Protection in Suriname has offered a more disturbing glimpse into how these trafficking operations work, and what’s happening to jaguars […]
Eight bird species are first confirmed avian extinctions this decade
Spix’s macaw, a brilliant blue species of Brazilian parrot that starred in the children’s animation Rio, has become extinct this century, according to a new assessment of endangered birds. The macaw is one of eight species, including the poo-uli, the Pernambuco pygmy-owl and the cryptic treehunter, that can be added to the growing list of […]
95 Percent of the World’s Lemurs Are Facing Extinction
Madagascar is home to dozens of species of charismatic lemurs who come in a range of sizes, colors and appearances, from the tiny mouse lemur to the largest indri, but a recent assessment found that one thing they all have in common is that nearly every species of lemur is now in danger of extinction. […]
Video: Why Are Wild Parrots Disappearing in Miami?
In Miami, conservationist Daria Feinstein is on a mission to save the beautiful Blue-and-yellow Macaw—before it’s too late. Since the species is not native to Florida, they are not protected by state law and poachers can legally capture the birds and their chicks for the lucrative pet trade. Watching the local population dwindle, Feinstein fights […]