Sordid business of illegal wildlife trade blooming, warns WWF

(Representational image)

New Delhi: Illegal wildlife trade is an unrivaled, flourishing business and is continually on the rise. The kind of torture and harassment that innocent animals are subjected to in the hands of poachers and traders is unfathomable.

As per the WWF, the trade involves hundreds of millions of wild plants and animals from tens of thousands of species. To provide a glimpse of the scale of wildlife trafficking, there are records of over 100 million tonnes of fish, 1.5 million live birds and 440,000 tonnes of medicinal plants in trade in just one year.

It is all courtesy illegal wildlife trade that human livelihood and the balance of nature is at stake.

Now, the WWF has warned that illegal trade in endangered species is thriving in the Golden Triangle that spans the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos.

According to a report in Metro News, The vast area is a ‘breeding ground for illegal wildlife trade’ with £3million worth of goods on display at Myanmar’s Mong La market alone, WWF said. The trade is driven by tourists from China and Vietnam buying traditional cures containing parts from endangered animals.

It is believed that Pangolins are the most illegally traded animals for their scales, which are used to treat asthma, rheumatism and arthritis.

More than a million Pangolins have been traded in the past 10 years. A report released by China’s Public Security Bureau for Forests and the University of Oxford found that the average price for a kilogram of pangolin scales is available for sale for $600. The price of a kilogram of pangolin scales for sale in 2013 was twice the amount as compared to 2008.

While elephants are skinned for a stomach ailment cure, bears are killed for bile. Tigers, rhinos, leopards and turtles are also among 10 species facing extinction due to the trade.

As per the report, WWF adviser Chrisgel Cruz said: ‘The markets of the Golden Triangle are a shocking and sobering sight, displaying thousands of body parts of some of the world’s most iconic and endangered animals. ‘Governments, law enforcers, NGOs and companies must act now.’