Last weekend we celebrated pangolins, the world’s most trafficked animal. February 18 was World Pangolin Day, and the international conservation community wants to make sure we raise awareness about the grim poaching threat plaguing these weird, wild, and prehistoric mammals. So let the UN Environment introduce you to the world’s most trafficked animal.
Pangolins look like scaly anteaters. They have unusually long, sticky tongues used for slurping up termites and other insects. They can curl themselves into an armadillo-style armor ball when threatened. All things considered, pangolins are curious insectivores representing the tenacity of life from prehistoric times to the present. Pangolins are rad. And pangolins are also highly endangered.
The world’s only scaly mammal endemic to Africa and Asia, pangolins have been hunted to near extinction in recent years. Their scales are truly natural marvels, extremely tough and capable of withstanding attacks from serious predators. However, they’re also prized for their use in folk medicines with no scientifically proven efficacy. Their meat is considered a delicacy, and it’s used in a variety of dishes in China and Vietnam. Even more, pangolins are extremely difficult to raise in captivity almost ensuring that so long as pangolins are on the menu, they’ll also be on the endangered species list.
Researchers estimate that 2 million pangolins have been illegally traded in the last 16 years. With increased scarcity, it has been difficult to estimate current populations of the 8 pangolin species. However, international pressure has mounted to prevent the pangolin’s extinction. Last year at CITES’ Conference of the Parties, where the world’s conservation agencies meet, pangolins received appendix I protection. Appendix I represents the highest level of protection offered by the organization and pressures the 183 affiliated nations to enforce the strictest possible conservation measures. And enforce they have. Thailand authorities recently displayed several metric tons of pangolin scales they seized in illegal distribution schemes over just the past three months. In Cameroon and Tanzania, officials seized 11 metric tons of scales bound for Asia. And in December, Shanghai Customs seized over 3 metric tons of trafficked scales. These incidents represent tens of thousands of pangolins being poached. And while it’s encouraging to see the increase in enforcement efforts, conservation groups are understandably overwhelmed by the scale of these operations.
So let’s celebrate pangolins to encourage those who are fighting the good fight to keep this weird scaly mammal alive. They truly are among the world’s most unique forms of life. It may be a few days belated, but let’s remember how rad life is when it includes the pangolin. Happy (Belated) World Pangolin Day!
