Animal and Wildlife Trafficking and Smuggling: $20 Billion
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).
5,000 tigers held in farms in China
Up to 5,000 tigers are held in tiger farms in China. The tigers are kept for their body parts to be used for medicinal purposes.
Source: Debbie Banks, “Earning their Stripes,” BBC News, June 29, 2009.
Wildlife smuggling bigger trade than drugs in Africa
African law enforcement officials are stating that the illegal trade in ivory and game meat from the continent is becoming a bigger black market trade than illegal drugs.
From the AFP (via Google News):
Trafficking in ivory and game meat has become one of the most lucrative illegal trades in Africa due to rising demand in Asia, experts said on Friday.”In terms of monetary value, ivory trade has surpassed drugs and is now one of the most thriving illegal trade in the continent,” said Karl Karugaba, the head of a panel from the Lusaka Agreement Task Force.
Globally, the worldwide trade in wildlife smuggling is estimated to be $20 billion.
Illegal logging threaten orangutans in Indonesia
Illegal logging and deforestation in Indonesia has reduced the orangutan population in the country by 80 percent over the last ten years. Currently, there are about 60,000 orangutans left in Indonesia.
Black market wildlife trade in California valued at $100 million
The illegal sale of wildlife animals from the state of California is generates an estimated $100 million a year, according to California Fish and Game officials. It is the second largest black market trade in California after the sale of illegal drugs.
Source: Peter Fimrite, “Poaching for profit in tough economic times,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 9, 2009.
Rhinos being poached in Zimbabwe
Between March 2008 and June 2009, around 120 rhinos were poached in Zimbabwe to meet the demand of China’s black market trade in rhino horns.
There are between 400 to 700 rhinos left in Zimbabwe.
Source: David Smith, “Poachers wiping out Zimbabwe’s rhinos as demand surges,” Guardian, June 9, 2009.
Wildlife seizures down in Cambodia
In 2008, authorities in Cambodia had 2,993 animal trafficking seizures throughout the country. That figure is down from the 6,294 seizures that took place in 2005. Authorities are not sure whether the drop is due to less trafficking activities or less trafficking activities being caught.
300,000 seals killed every year
300,000 seals are killed every year for its fur or meat.
Source: “Seal hunting: Political animals,” The Economist, May 16, 2009, page 18.
Bear bile seller arrested in Los Angeles
A woman attempting to sell bear bile was arrested by police in Los Angeles after she was found to have imported almost two pounds of bile from China. According to authorities, the two pounds of bear bile has a street value of $400,000 dollars. Bear bile, taken from a living bear’s gallbladder, is used as a treatment for conjunctivitis, jaundice and hemorrhoids.
See more data at our Wildlife Trafficking page.
Read the article at the Los Angeles Times.
5 to 10 tigers in Indonesia killed each year by poachers
Between 5 to 10 tigers are killed in Indonesia each year by poachers attempting to sell the tigers on the black market. According to conservation groups, a dead tiger can fetch up to $3,300 for the poacher, or the equivalent of a yearly salary for an Indonesian worker.
There are now only 250 tigers left in Indoensia, down from around 1,000 in the 1970s.
Source: Associated Press, “Indonesian tiger catchers race against time,” Google News, March 1, 2009.
