The WWF (formerly known as the World Wildlife Fund) has estimated that animal and wildlife trafficking to be worth between $15 billion and $25 billion a year.

Source: Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark, “Poaching for Bin Laden,” Guardian, May 5, 2007, (accessed: May 7, 2007).

Additional $20 Billion sources:

Alan Campana, “Animal Investigators: Solving Wildlife Crimes and Saving Endangered Species,” Wilson Center, May 20, 2009.

In addition, an editorial in Voice of America News, which provides the “views of the US Government,” states that wildlife trafficking is a $20 Billion market.  Voice of America News, “Fighting Wildlife Trafficking,” Editorial, September 15, 2009.

An estimated 3,000 tons of wildlife meat is consumed and exported into China from Vietnam each year.

Source:  “Over 2 tons of wildlife and animal bones seized,” VietNam Net, March 11, 2010.

More than 8 percent of the world’s population of elephants are being killed each year due to poaching, according to a conservation biologist at the University of Washington.

Source:  Sandi Doughton, “Sale of elephant tusk stockpiles may encourage poaching, experts worry,” Seattle Times, March 11, 2010.

During February 2010, Italian officials in Rome seized 30,000 wildlife products while searching through the luggage of more than 3,000 passengers.

Source:  AFP, “World cops target traditional healers over smuggled wildlife,” Google News, March 5, 2010.

In 2010, there were only 50 tigers believed to be roaming in the wild versus 5,000 tigers raised in tiger farms in China.

Source:  Patrick Winn, “Can Vladimir Putin save the world’s tigers?,” GlobalPost, February 24, 2010.

An official with China’s wildlife conservation agency stated to the Wall Street Journal that the global ban on tiger bones and parts created losses of $337 Million to the ancient medicine industry in the country.

Source:  Shai Oster, “China’s Tiger Farms Spark a Standoff,” Wall Street Journal, February 12, 2010.

Between 1998 and 2010, the tiger population in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Burma/Myanmar dropped 70 percent, from 1,200 tigers in 1998 to 350 in 2010.

Source: AFP, “Mekong tiger population at ‘crisis point’: WWF,” Yahoo News, January 26, 2010.

In the 1900s, there were an estimated 100,000 wild tigers roaming the world.

In the 1980s, there were an estimated 20,000 wild tigers roaming the world.

At the start of 2010, there were an estimated 3,200 wild tigers roaming the world.

Source:  AFP, “Mekong tiger population at ‘crisis point’: WWF,” Yahoo News, January 26, 2010.

An estimated 20,000 bears are believed to be held on bear farms across Asia.

The bears are kept to harvest their bear bile, which is used for traditional medicines.

Source:  Associated Press, “19 bears rescued from bile farm in Vietnam,” National Public Radio, January 22, 2010.

10 tons of African Ivory was seized in Southeast Asia by Law Enforcement Authorities in 2009.

Source:  Associated Press, “US-Thai operation charges 2 for ivory smuggling,” Washington Post, January 20, 2010.