Two Baltimore, Maryland, men are facing charges for allegedly using exotic animals – including snakes, a lemur and a spider monkey – in photoshoots featuring three semi-clothed models and a ring of fire in a garage beneath a luxury shopping complex. Photographer Vernon Crowfey III, the 32-year-old owner of the company Photogeniks, was arrested in Towson, Maryland, […]
Tag: spider monkey
It’s ‘whack-a-mole’: Alarming rise in pet trade fuels wildlife trafficking into California
In October, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer at California’s Otay Mesa border crossing noticed an odd bulge inside a man’s pants. Jesse Agus Martinez, a U.S. citizen who lives in Tijuana, repeatedly claimed the bump was “pirrin,” a Spanish word for penis. His history of smuggling birds into the U.S. prompted further examination, […]
Jaguar tracks still stained with blood in Bolivia
On one Saturday in August 2023, news of a jaguar (Panthera onca) death shook the small streets of the Amazonian town of Ixiamas in Bolivia. It was all community members were talking about, after having found the animal’s carcass on the side of a dirt road leading to the community of Santa Fe. The jaguar’s […]
Houston Woman Sentenced for Illegal Sale of Endangered Animals
A recent case in Houston has highlighted the grim reality of the illegal wildlife trade, particularly concerning endangered species. Savannah Nicole Valdez, a 21-year-old woman, has been sentenced to prison for her involvement in the illegal sale of exotic animals, including a spider monkey and toucans. Valdez’s sentencing came after a thorough investigation initiated in […]
Rewilding Peruvian Spider Monkeys!!!
Closing out the last days of 2023 and first days of 2024, I want to share the resent Peruvian Spider Monkey (Ateles chamek) REWILDING program activity thanks to the challenging work of scientists, veterinarians and volunteers of the Taricaya Ecological Reserve (www.taricayaecoreserve.org) and Kawsay Biological Center (www.kawsaycenterperu.org) in the southeastern Amazon rainforest of Peru. As […]