Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Feb 8;11(2):439.
doi: 10.3390/ani11020439.

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the 'Disposal' of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Shannon N Rivera  1 , Andrew Knight  1 , Steven P McCulloch  1
Affiliations

Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the 'Disposal' of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES

Shannon N Rivera et al. Animals (Basel). .

Abstract

Increased focus on the illegal global wildlife trade has resulted in greater numbers of live animals confiscated by authorities, increasing the need to manage these animals responsibly. Most wildlife seizures take place in Southeast Asia, with global demand for live animals fuelling much of the trafficking. Guidelines for the 'disposal' of live specimens are provided by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), although individual Parties must implement provisions through national laws and regulations. 'Disposal' is the term used for the management of illegally traded wildlife upon confiscation. Confiscated live animals can be euthanised (i.e., killed), repatriated to their native country and released, or kept in captivity. This study investigates barriers to proper care and disposal of confiscated live animals in Southeast Asia, where roughly one quarter of the global multibillion dollar illegal wildlife trade takes place. Interviews were conducted with 18 professionals working within conservation, wildlife crime, and confiscated live animal management. Eight limitations to the proper care and disposal of confiscated wildlife were identified: (1) political will, (2) policy, (3) funding, (4) capacity, (5) expertise (6) attitudes and behaviours, (7) exploitation, and (8) corruption. Based on interviews, we propose seven key reforms to support the efficient and humane management of illegally traded wildlife for national authorities and CITES parties. These are wildlife seizure management, legislative support, enhanced political will, demand reduction, global participation, registry of rescue centres, and terminology change. This research highlights major barriers to the proper care and disposal of live confiscated animals and proposes key reforms to improve the conservation of threatened species and the welfare of millions of illegally traded animals.

Keywords: CITES; animal welfare; conservation; illegal wildlife trade; wildlife confiscations; wildlife disposal.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Southeast Asian countries and accession to the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES.) (Map courtesy of ASEAN UP via aseanup.com. CITES data retrieved from CITES.org).
Figure 2
Figure 2
The interrelatedness of identified limitations impeding the proper disposal of confiscated live animals.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Nijman V. An overview of international wildlife trade from Southeast Asia. Biodivers. Conserv. 2010;19:1101–1114. doi: 10.1007/s10531-009-9758-4. - DOI
    1. UNODC . World Wildlife Crime Report 2020. United Nations Publication; Vienna, Austria: 2020. [(accessed on 30 August 2020)]. Available online: https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/wildlife/2020/World_Wi....
    1. United Nations . Tackling Illicit Trafficking in Wildlife. United Nations; New York, NY, USA: 2017. [(accessed on 4 March 2018)]. UN General Assembly A/71/L.88 Item 13. Available online: http://undocs.org/A/71/L.88.
    1. IUCN . Guidelines for the Management of Confiscated, Live Organisms. IUCN; Gland, Switzerland: 2019.
    1. Fuller T. A burden of Care Over Seized Exotic Wildlife in Thailand. [(accessed on 30 March 2018)];New York Times. 2013 Feb 5;:A6. Available online: https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/05/world/asia/thailand-faces-a-noahs-ark....

LinkOut - more resources