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Wildlife for sale: Is it possible to win the

fight in Ecuador?
16 December 2016 / Isabel Riofrio
Translated by Romina Castagnino

In the past twelve years, Ecuadorian authorities have

rescued over 9,000 endangered animals from the
trafficking circuit. The authorities have established
that most of these animals were drawn from Napo,
Sucumbios and Orellana, provinces north of the
Ecuadorian Amazon.

The most trafficked wild animals are macaws, parrots, parakeets, monkeys,
turtles and boas.

These species can be trafficked alive. Body parts like skin, fangs, claws and
even tissues are also traded, especially abroad.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the

illegal wildlife trade generates revenues ranging between $7 billion and $23
billion per year.

Juan Manuel Carrin recalls that 30 years ago he was one of the first to warn that
wildlife trafficking would become a major threat to Ecuadors biodiversity. A
foreigner would come and train local people in certain techniques, Carrin, a
biologist and the director of the Zoological Foundation of Ecuador, told MongabayLatam. They provided mist nets and the locals were given the mission of capturing
wildlife. At that time, Andean cocks-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruvianus) were the
main victims.
For each Andean cock-of-the-rock that survived forced captivity, twenty died in
transit. We sounded the alarm about this, and denounced it, said Carrin. More
recently, he said, this situation has improved due to an increase in anti-trafficking
controls and, above all, because many communities have become aware of the impact
the wildlife trade has on their environments.
Despite this, between 2003 and 2013 the Wildlife Unit of Ecuadors Ministry of
Environment reported the confiscation of nearly 8,000 trafficked amphibians, birds,
mammals, fish and reptiles. The recent figures, although part of a preliminary report,
suggest the problem persists: in 2014, 1,684 specimens were confiscated and in 2015
around 222.

Wild animals rescued by the Wildlife Unit of Ecuadors Ministry of Environment.

Photo courtesy of Ecuadors Ministry of Environment
Tricks of the trade
Once removed from their habitats, animals can be trafficked alive; however, on many
occasions, only certain parts are marketed. Charapas turtle eggs are particularly
popular, along with the heads, horns, claws and fangs of various species that are then
sold as ornaments. The dynamics of trafficking depend on many variables, but the
main one is demand, said Karen Noboa, an official of the Wildlife Unit of the
Directory for National Biodiversity of the Ministry of Environment.
The appetites and requirements of this illegal market can sometimes astound even
experts. Weve had cases of people in the East (of Ecuador), who have particular
culinary traditions and who want certain parts of animals that are endangered, such as
a gallbladder, recounted Noboa.

Wild animals rescued by the Wildlife Unit of the Ministry of Environment. The
charapas turtles and their eggs are among the most traded on the illegal market. Photo
courtesy of Ecuadors Ministry of Environment
In addition to live specimens and animal body parts, the Wildlife Unit has also
detected trafficking of biological samples, such as tissues that are sent abroad to be
included in scientific collections. Its to get access to genetic resources, explained
Noboa. Thats a bit more complicated because we are just now considering it a
crime.
A lucrative business
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the wildlife
trade generates revenues ranging between $7 billion and $23 billion per year, making
it the worlds fourth most influential illicit activity, after the illegal trade of drugs,
arms and human trafficking.

Regional and international traffickers operating in Ecuador have established a

network of people, called extractors, who are experts in hunting and know the
location of animals and the type of traps needed to remove them from their natural
habitat. These extractors are the lowest paid parts of a long chain, Noboa said.
When (the species) arrives at an international destination, the price is twenty or ten
times greater than the payment received by the person who killed it or simply
removed it.

White-fronted capuchin (Cebs albifrons aequatorialis) rescued by the Wildlife Unit

of the Ministry of Environment. Photo courtesy of Ecuadors Ministry of
Environment
Despite this, extractors are key elements in wildlife trafficking without them
intermediaries and large traders would not be able to access the animals habitats.
Both Noboa and Carrin agree that this illegal activity has the same structure as drug
trafficking operations, or is somehow related to them. Indeed, a few years ago Carrin
and his Zoological Foundations team received 100 confiscated Pacific parakeets
(Psittacara strenuus) that had been confiscated by the police during an anti-drug
operation. The birds, common in the subtropical ecosystem of Ecuador, were then
released into The Lalo Loor Dry Forest Reserve, located in the province of Manab,
on the Ecuadorian coast.
However, this is not the only way in which traffickers camouflage species in captivity.
Often, animals are hidden inside PVC pipes, especially insects or small parakeets or
parrots. Others are concealed under clothing. Amphibians are very easy to transport.
Some are very small and, and are simply taken in cloth covers, Noboa said.

Confiscated Pacific parakeets. Photo courtesy of the National Biodiversity Institute

The Wildlife Unit has confiscated lepidopterans and hummingbirds that are important
for scientific collections in other countries.
In the case of birds, parrots and macaws are the most trafficked species, while popular
reptiles include boas, charapas turtles and their eggs. Among mammals, primates are
often taken as pets. Most animals destined for traffic come from the Amazon,
especially from Orellana, Napo and Sucumbios, although activity has also been
detected in Esmeraldas and, to a lesser extent, in the subtropical zone of Imbabura.
Although domestic controls on wildlife trafficking have increased, Noboa explained
that the difficulty comes when traffickers reach international border areas, especially
the one with Peru. The sale of live animals on the street is poorly regulated there,
Noboa said, something that does not happen here in Ecuador. Article 247 of
Ecuadors Integrated Organic Criminal Code (COIP) allows for the punishment of
people involved in all stages of illegal wildlife trafficking.

The silvery woolly monkey (Lagothrix poeppigii) is one of the species targeted to be
sold as pets. Photo courtesy of the National Biodiversity Institute
Since August 2014, persons who hunt, fish, capture, collect, remove, take, transport,
traffic, benefit from, exchange or commercialize, specimens or parts of thereof, or the
constituent parts, products, and derivatives, of wild flora or terrestrial, marine or
aquatic fauna, migratory, threatened or endangered species, can face one to three
years in prison.
The Wildlife Unit has found it difficult to determine the main wildlife sale
destinations. However, based on internal records, they believe China, Japan and
Thailand could be the primary market for these species. Europe and the United States
are also on the list.
Efforts to protect wildlife

One of the institutions that supports the preservation of wildlife in Ecuador is the
Zoological Foundation, through its management of the Guayllabamba Zoo. Our zoo
cares for animals that have suffered from human activity, from trafficking or even
animals that have been kept as pets, explained Carrin. Our purpose is to combat
illegal trafficking of animals.

This spectacled bear, also known as Yumbo, was rescued and released in the area of
Northwest Quito. The bears collar contains a satellite tracker that monitors his
activity and ensures his survival. Photo by Max Araujo, Project Assistant of the
Zoological Foundation
So far in 2016, this institution has received 113 animals that have been rehabilitated
through veterinary care and surgical interventions. Despite wanting to reintroduce
these species to their habitats, zoo specialists often do not know where these animals
come from or the degree of their human dependence, two factors that influence the
ability of the animal to readapt to their natural habitat.

Not even 4 percent of animals are successfully reintegrated into their natural
habitat, Carrin said. Reinserted animals usually are raptors, sloths, anteaters and
porcupines, but they are a minority. The turtle is one of the species that most
frequently arrives at the Guayllabamba Zoo, and according to Carrin, it is now the
animal most trafficked in Ecuador.

This hawk arrived with an exposed wing fracture. Doctors had to cut part of the bone
and immobilize him for the wound to recover. After a long time, the bones re-knit, the
wound healed and today the hawk can make short flights of 1- 2 meters. Photo
courtesy of the Zoological Foundation
Another institution involved in protecting species is the National Institute of
Biodiversity, which works with the DNA Bar Codes project. Still in the development
phase, this project seeks to create a library to identify the species subject to illegal
trafficking and use this information as evidence in judicial proceedings.
So far it has formed a database of 200 threatened or commonly trafficked species,
said Diego Incln, Director of the National Institute of Biodiversity. They are all
priority due to the critical condition they are facing. To determine this initial list of
species, experts involved had to look into the official records of the Ministry of
Environment.
This global project, managed by the Smithsonian Institute and the Consortium for the
Barcode of Life, has already been implemented in Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, South
Africa and Nigeria. Ecuador is the only country in Latin America to join.
Despite the situation, everybody agrees that education is the best way to combat
wildlife trafficking. As people learn about and appreciate their heritage, they will
tend to fall less into aggression against their natural heritage, said Carrin.
This story was reported by Mongabays Latin America (Latam) team and was first
published in Spanish on our Latam site on October 18, 2016.

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Article published by Romina Castagnino on 2016-12-16.

Article Topics:

AnimalsBiodiversityConservationEndangered
SpeciesEnvironmentForestsMammalsRainforestsReptilesTropical
ForestsWildlifeWildlife Trafficking
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