Thailand's online reptile market decreases but shifts toward native species during COVID-19

Abstract

The recent COVID-19 pandemic presented the world with a crisis of incredible scale and made wildlife markets the focal point of authorities. Scientific literature on COVID-19 and wildlife trade overwhelmingly focused on the zoonotic risks of wildlife markets. As many physical marketplaces for wildlife were faced with closure or restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19, alternative sale platforms were sought. I monitored social media platforms in Thailand during the pandemic and compared this with data obtained in 2016. I found a significant reduction of lizards and snakes offered for sale on social media, compared with before the pandemic. Although the quantity decreased, I found that the number of species almost doubled in snakes, of which unprotected native species increased by 245%. Transport restrictions would limit the mobility of harvesters and interrupts trade chains, and thus could explain the reduced number of snakes and lizards for sale. However, the increase in native species for sale shows that the impact of this international trade disruption could shift focus from international trade to what is locally available. Potentially having serious consequences for the conservation of local species and in line with previous studies documenting increased poaching rates and wildlife crime incidents.

Keywords: COVID-19; pandemic; reptiles; social media; wildlife trade.