Over-religious Activity, A Threat to Biodiversity: A Case Study (2): Save the Owl (Aves: Strigidae)

Padhy, Sachidananda

doi:10.1080/09766901.2016.11884763

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…Owl parts (talons, skulls, feathers, bones and meat) have historically been harvested for use in traditional medicine, for superstitious beliefs and the wild meat trade , Williams et al 2014, Padhy 2016. Televised news media have popularised the religious activity of sacrificing of owls in India during the Diwali light festival, and this has led to an increase of owls in markets in the lead-up to the festival; in some cases, vendors even offer homedelivery services of owls (Padhy 2016). Furthermore, anecdotal reports suggest an increase in trade of live owls in markets in Indonesia (Nijman & Nekaris 2017), and dead owls in Malaysia ) and in India for medicinal use (Ahmed 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital media and the modern-day pet trade: a test of the ‘Harry Potter effect’ and the owl trade in Thailand

Siriwat¹,

Nekaris²,

Nijman³

2020

Endang. Species. Res.

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We explored the influence of film and media on the exotic pet trade using the context of the 'Harry Potter effect' and the owl trade in Thailand as a case study. We compared the owl trade between market surveys dating from 1966 to 2019 in Bangkok's Chatuchak market, to online surveys from 2017 to 2019. Using generalised linear models, we examined whether prices offered for owls could be explained by variables linked to whether the species are featured in the Harry Potter franchise, body size, tameness and temporal/seasonal harvesting. We also tested for an anthropogenic Allee effect by examining the relationship between the availability of owls and asking price. Owls never exceeded 1.3% of the total number of birds for sale in Chatuchak animal market, and we did not observe any owls during our visits in 2011, 2018 and 2019. In contrast, we re corded 311 individuals of 17 species from 206 posts on the online marketplace on Facebook. Owls are offered for sale during all months of each year surveyed but more so from February to April; availability did influence price. We found that price was significantly explained by body mass, but not by association with the Harry Potter franchise or by tameness. We found that owls have become more popular as pets, and as they are potentially sourced from the wild, this inevitably causes conservation concerns. Owls are just one of many taxa suffering from the unregulated and accessible marketplace that social media sites offer to vendors.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital media and the modern-day pet trade: a test of the ‘Harry Potter effect’ and the owl trade in Thailand

Siriwat¹,

Nekaris²,

Nijman³

2020

Endang. Species. Res.

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“…In general, religious beliefs and dogmas are highly contagious. If this superstition migrates from place to place and initiates such negative activity, it may cause the end of this bird population quickly in an area (Padhy 2016).…”

Section: Owl Sacrificementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this context, the various dictums presented in the Dharmic epics of Hindu religion shows torch to stop animal cruelty, an anti-ecological activity (Padhy 2000(Padhy , 2014Padhy et al 2006). This communication is aimed to focus on certain selected ethical dictums, which has educative value against cruelty to biodiversity that is spread over in our country as well throughout the world along with religious practices (Padhy 2016(Padhy , 2017aPadhy and Mohapatra 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Physico-chemical Integrity of Lotic Ecosystems in Central Western Ghats through Multivariate Techniques

2018

JBD

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Since the Vedic period, there is attempt to protect the biodiversity through ethical restrictions, reflected in various epics. Harming animals is widely considered as one of the lowest and cruellest activity of human beings. Animal cruelty may be for food, religious sacrifice, scientific experiment, business purpose or over carriage; it has a negative impact on the growth and sustenance of the animal world. Let the human society follow the ethical restrictions and save the biodiversity.

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“…The use of Indian wildlife in rituals has already been suggested to have a negative conservation impact. For example, during the Diwali festival, observed on Amavasya (new moon) when the goddess Lakshmi is worshipped, families may sacrifice an owl in their house, forcing the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, to stay with them (Padhy, 2016). An increased trade in owls in India has been linked to this practice (TRAFFIC, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medicine, black magic and supernatural beings: Cultural rituals as a significant threat to slender lorises in India

et al. 2022

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1. Trade of wildlife for use in traditional medicines, rituals, magical spells and cultural practices occurs globally and has been studied mostly in Africa and Asia.2. The grey slender loris Loris lydekkerianus is used for both medicinal and ritual purposes, but little information is available on how the user is meant to extract their medicinal properties, or the potential impact these practices have on the species' populations. From 2014-2021, we used open-ended interviews with 293 informants in three slender loris range states in Southern India to collect qualitative information on people's beliefs regarding the use of slender lorises in traditional medicine, black magic rituals and other cultural practices. To understand this further, we analysed data on 139 live slender loris rescues from three rescue and rehabilitation centres and one government organization in Bengaluru, India collected over an 18-year period. 4. We found that 116/139 live individuals had been involved in black magic rituals, including piercing, or burning the body and the eyes. These ritual practices occurred more often to female slender lorises and during the new moon. Data from 293 interviews revealed that astrologers regularly use live lorises for fortune-telling or for warding off evil. Slender loris body parts are used to make traditional folk medicine, develop black magic potions that bring people harm, hypnotize people or to thwart evil. 5. Habitat loss and anthropogenic pressures, coupled with the existing slender loris trade for cultural practices, are a cause for grave concern. Numerous deeprooted superstitious beliefs and rituals continue to thrive in modern India, and this is potentially one of the major threats to India's already imperilled slender loris population. More research into the prevalence of loris use for black magic is needed to assess the impact on species sustainability.

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Over-religious Activity, A Threat to Biodiversity: A Case Study (2): Save the Owl (Aves: Strigidae)

Cited by 5 publications

References 1 publication

Digital media and the modern-day pet trade: a test of the ‘Harry Potter effect’ and the owl trade in Thailand

Digital media and the modern-day pet trade: a test of the ‘Harry Potter effect’ and the owl trade in Thailand

Assessment of Physico-chemical Integrity of Lotic Ecosystems in Central Western Ghats through Multivariate Techniques

Medicine, black magic and supernatural beings: Cultural rituals as a significant threat to slender lorises in India

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