China has been accused of deceiving the international community by allowing a network of farms to breed thousands of captive tigers for the sale of their body parts, in breach of their own longstanding ban on the trade. The Chinese government has allowed about 200 specialist farms to hold an estimated 6,000 tigers for slaughter, […]
Tag: traditional medicine
POLL: Should the international trade in geckos be stopped?
For many species threatened by the illegal wildlife trafficking, such as rhinos, elephants, tigers, and bears, debates persist as to whether a legal trade in their parts and products can reduce smuggling. But increasing evidence suggests that a legal trade instead acts as a conduit for the illegal trade. For instance, recent studies showed that […]
First Pan-African Otter Training Workshop held in Tanzania
The latest Red List update by IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, has placed an alarming 12 of the 13 species of otter worldwide showing a declining population, with the North American river otter the only one shown as “stable”. Of those 13, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to three species: The spotted-necked otter (Lutra […]
Pangolins: why this cute prehistoric mammal is facing extinction
A what? A pangolin. It’s the only mammal in the world that is completely covered in scales. It looks like an artichoke on legs. Or a cross between a crocodile and a snake. Or a wacky computer-game invention. It is one of 10 animals that Sir David Attenborough would put on his personal ark, and […]
South Africa’s Kruger National Park invites bids for 500 white rhinos
South Africa’s Kruger National Park is inviting bids for rhinos under a plan to move 500 of the animals to safety to counter a wave of poaching for their horns, highly prized in some Asian countries as a sign of wealth. In newspaper adverts on Sunday, South African National Parks invited potential buyers to “make […]
Over a million pangolins slaughtered in the last decade
All pangolins now threatened with extinction, and two considered Critically Endangered. One of the world’s most bizarre animal groups is now at risk of complete eradication, according to an update of the IUCN Red List. Pangolins, which look and behave similarly to (scaly) anteaters yet are unrelated, are being illegally consumed out of existence due […]
Manta ray tourism worth 28 times more than killing them for Traditional Chinese Medicine
A new study in the open access journal PLoS ONE estimates that manta rays are worth $140 million a year in tourism across 23 countries, significantly outweighing the worth of manta ray gill plates, which have become the newest craze in Traditional Chinese Medicine. “As an example in Indonesia, revenue to fishermen from manta gill […]
Lions for sale: big game hunting combines with lion bone trade to threaten endangered cats
Koos Hermanus would rather not give names to the lions he breeds. So here, behind a 2.4-meter high electric fence, is 1R, a three-and-a-half-year-old male, who consumes 5kg of meat a day and weighs almost 200kg. It will only leave its enclosure once it has been “booked”‘ by a hunter, most of whom are from […]