Evaluating the relationships between the legal and illegal international wildlife trades

Tittensor, Derek P.; Harfoot, Michael B. J.; McLardy, Claire; Britten, Gregory L.; Kecse-Nagy, Katalin; Landry, Bryan; Outhwaite, Willow; Price, Becky; Sinovas, Pablo; Blanc, Julian; Burgess, Neil D.; Malsch, Kelly

doi:10.1101/726075

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…Wild animal derivatives typically used, and widely reported on include tiger bones, rhino horn, bear bile and pangolin scales. The use of these species to produce ingredients used in TCM have been reported to have negative impacts on population numbers (Cooney et al 2015; Gao et al 2016; Tittensor et al 2020; Zhang et al 2008), and the welfare of the individual animals (Zhang et al 2008).…”

Section: Introduction: the Demand For Ejiaomentioning

confidence: 99%

The Donkey Skin Trade: Challenges and Opportunities for Policy Change

Goodrum

Theuri²,

Mutua

et al. 2022

Global Policy

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The use of animal derivatives in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) dates back more than 5000 years. Donkey skins are one such animal derivative, the skins are used to produce ejiao, which is a luxury product and believed by some to have a variety of health benefits. The increasing demand for ejiao is putting the global donkey population at risk. In China between 1990 and 2018 the donkey population decreased by 77 per cent, as a consequence donkeys are largely being sourced from Africa to meet the demand. In low and middle‐income countries donkeys are a valuable livelihood asset. Research has emerged highlighting the potential detrimental impacts of the loss of donkeys on livelihoods. In addition to the impact on communities, the trade presents a number of signifcant health and welfare concerns to donkeys. Methods for raising awareness, reducing demand and challenging and enforcing policy are all needed to reduce the impact of the donkey skin trade. Policy change needs to be bottom up, with local bans in countries where the trade is most damaging and coordinated enforcement of legislation, including the tackling of illegal cross border trade. Partnership across non‐governmental organisations, agencies and government is essential.

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Section: Introduction: the Demand For Ejiaomentioning

confidence: 99%

The Donkey Skin Trade: Challenges and Opportunities for Policy Change

Goodrum

Theuri²,

Mutua

et al. 2022

Global Policy

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“…IWT has also been studied through models attempting to account for seizure underreporting [ 29 ]. TRAFFIC seizure records have also been combined with biodiversity transect surveys to understand declines in ploughshare tortoises in Madagascar [ 30 ], and the relationships between legal and illegal trade have been studied using a combination of CITES, LEMIS, and EU-TWIX data [ 31 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Economic value of illegal wildlife trade entering the USA

2021

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Illegal wildlife trade is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity. Understanding its economic value is a first step to establishing the magnitude of the problem. We develop a dataset of illegal wildlife trade prices and combine it with seizure data to estimate the economic value of illegal wildlife trade entering the USA. Using 2013 as a reference year, the results reveal that the economic value of illegal wildlife trade entering the USA was, using a conservative scenario where potential outliers were excluded, US$3.2 billion/year (uncertainty range (UR) 5th and 95th percentile of US$0.6–8.2 billion/year) and, without excluding potential outliers, US$4.3 billion/year (UR of US$1.3–9.6 billion/year). Our results for the USA alone are of a comparable magnitude to the lower bound of commonly used global estimates of the economic value of IWT of uncertain origin, suggesting that the global economic value of IWT is currently underestimated and requires an urgent revision.

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“…Trade in many taxa is legal, regulated, and sustainable. However, not all trade is legal, and demand for certain wildlife products has led to unsustainable levels of exploitation that threaten thousands of species (Tittensor, Harfoot, McLardy, et al, 2020). The global scale and severity of the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) have made it a prominent conservation issue ('t Sas‐Rolfes, Challender, Hinsley, Veríssimo, & Milner‐Gulland, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rhino horn use by consumers of traditional Chinese medicine in China

Cheung

Mazerolle

Possingham

et al. 2021

Conservat Sci and Prac

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The medicinal use of rhino horn in Asia is a major driver of poaching and illegal trade. Research into the different actors involved in this trade is needed to inform policymaking and improve conservation outcomes. While researchers have investigated rhino horn consumers in Vietnam, studies have yet to focus on China.Here, we conducted a large-scale online survey to investigate medicinal rhino horn consumption in China's Guangdong province. One in seven respondents reported having used rhino horn in the past year. These individuals tended to be older, male, wealthier and better educated; several healthcare usage variables were also associated with rhino horn consumption. These findings can help guide the development of tailored demand reduction interventions. Our results question the effectiveness of the global community's current approach to rhino conservation. We conclude by highlighting the need for conservationists to work more closely with key stakeholders to find lasting and sustainable solutions.

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Evaluating the relationships between the legal and illegal international wildlife trades

Cited by 5 publications

References 1 publication

The Donkey Skin Trade: Challenges and Opportunities for Policy Change

The Donkey Skin Trade: Challenges and Opportunities for Policy Change

Economic value of illegal wildlife trade entering the USA

Rhino horn use by consumers of traditional Chinese medicine in China

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