Wildlife Trade Newshttp://www.traffic.org/home/2010-03-17T13:42:43ZSquarespacehttp://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/17/new-analysis-points-to-ivory-enforcement-failures-in-parts-o.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-17T05:51:36Z2010-03-17T05:51:36Z

Tackling illegal domestic ivory markets in Africa and Asia, like this one in Angola, is key to stopping poaching of elephants Click photo to enlarge © Tom Milliken / TRAFFIC   Doha, Qatar, 16 March 2010 – Urgent law enforcement action by governments in Central and West Africa and South-east Asia is crucial to addressing the illicit ivory trade, according to a new analysis of elephant trade data released today.

Detailed regional summaries of the data held in the Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS), the world’s largest database on ivory seizures, highlight the failure of law enforcement in key elephant range States facing an increasing threat from organised crime and the presence of unregulated markets.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/16/porous-china-myanmar-border-allowing-illegal-wildlife-trade.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-16T09:31:41Z2010-03-16T09:31:41Z

TRAFFIC's annual snapshot into the state of the wildlife trade in China in 2008 was launched today at the CITES meeting in Qatar Click photo to enlarge   Doha, Qatar, 16 March 2010 — Porous borders are allowing vendors in Myanmar to offer a door-to-door delivery service for illegal wildlife products such as tiger bone wine to buyers in China, according to TRAFFIC’s latest snapshot into wildlife trade in China.

The State of Wildlife Trade in China 2008, released today, is the third in an annual series on emerging trends in China’s wildlife trade.

The report found that over-exploitation of wildlife for trade has affected many species and is stimulating illegal trade across China’s borders.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/15/potential-cites-trade-ban-for-rare-salamander-underscores-wi.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-15T06:24:24Z2010-03-15T06:24:24Z

Kaiser's Spotted Newt: fewer than 1000 mature, wild individuals remain Click photo to enlarge © TRAFFIC   Doha, Qatar, 15 March 2010 – A little-known Iranian salamander is poised to become the first example of a species requiring international government protection because of e-commerce – a major threat to endangered wildlife that authorities are struggling to address.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/13/peru-given-six-months-to-clean-up-mahogany-trade.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-13T18:47:53Z2010-03-13T18:47:53Z

Peru has been given 6 months to address management issues in its mahogany trade or face an export ban Click photo to enlarge © TRAFFIC   Doha, Qatar, 13 March 2010 – In a CITES meeting on Friday, Peru was given a six month ultimatum to address critical issues over the illegal mahogany trade.

The CITES Standing Committee – the body that governs CITES between conference of the parties meetings – took the decision to take this step following Peru’s repeated failure to manage effectively illegal logging and trade in the valuable timber.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/12/chinese-medicine-societies-reject-use-of-tiger-bones-ahead-o.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-12T13:42:03Z2010-03-12T13:42:03Z

The World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies has urged its members not to use parts from endangered wildlife. TRAFFIC's Xu Hongfa speaking at the meeting © TRAFFIC Click photo to enlarge   Doha, Qatar, 12 March 2010 – WWF and TRAFFIC International welcome a World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS) statement urging its members not to use tiger bone or any other parts from endangered wildlife.

The statement was made at a symposium on Friday in Beijing and notes that some of the claimed medicinal benefits of tiger bone have no basis. The use of tiger bones was removed from the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) pharmacopeia in 1993, when China first introduced a domestic ban on tiger trade.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/5/interpol-targets-illegal-trade-in-wildlife-medical-products.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-05T14:56:18Z2010-03-05T14:56:18Z

Thousands of medicinal products containing or marketing illegal wildlife ingredients have been confiscated during Operation Tram Click photo to enlarge © TRAFFIC   5 March 2010—a month-long operation targeting the illegal trade in medicines containing protected wildlife products has resulted in arrests worldwide and the seizure of thousands of illegal products worth more than EUR10 million.

INTERPOL co-ordinated Operation Tram, which involved national wildlife enforcement authorities, police, customs and specialized units from 18 countries across all five continents. In Italy alone, officers from the Corpo Forestalle dello Stato made more than 30,000 seizures.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/4/sniffer-dogs-detect-wildlife-smuggling-in-russian-far-east.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-04T11:50:50Z2010-03-04T11:50:50Z

Star of the show: Kira and her owner Elena Kurbatskaya demonstrating their skills to journalists in Vladivostok International airport Click photo to enlarge © WWF / E. Starostina  Vladivostock, Russia, 4 March 2010—A programme of using sniffer dogs to track down wildlife smuggling is proving a success in border regions of the Russian Far East (RFE).

A total of 88 specially trained dogs in the Far Eastern Operative Customs’ sniffer dog service have been trained to sniff out illegal goods, including drugs and arms. The animals operate in 13 Customs Divisions in 49 Customs checkpoints.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/4/rat-snakes-on-a-slippery-slope.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-04T00:01:48Z2010-03-04T00:01:48Z

Oriental Rat Snakes are threatened in Java because government-set quotas are not adherred to by traders Click photo to enlarge © Mark Auliya/TRAFFIC Southeast Asia   Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 4 March 2010—Government-set quotas in Indonesia are being widely-flouted, leading to over-harvesting and illegal trade in Oriental Rat Snakes from Java, the Indonesian island where the species is largely sourced a new TRAFFIC study has found.

In demand for its skin in the fashion industry and for the exotic meat and traditional medicine trades, the Oriental Rat Snake has been commercially harvested since the 1970s.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/3/thailand-campaign-on-illegal-ivory-consumers-warned-buy-ivor.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-03T07:01:38Z2010-03-03T07:01:38Z

Campaign banners in Bangkok's main airpost warn travellers not to buy ivory products Click image to enlarge Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Thailand, 3 March, 2010—Enforcement Authorities in Thailand today launched a “Buy Ivory, Buy Trouble” campaign today aimed at raising awareness of the illegal trade in elephant ivory items sold as souvenirs to holiday makers and others.

The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP)—the Thai authority responsible for tackling illegal wildlife trade, has launched the campaign, in co-operation with the Airport Authority of Thailand (AOT) and the wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC, targeting passengers travelling through Suvarnabhumi International Airport.]]>

http://www.traffic.org/home/2010/3/2/release-of-rhino-poachers-exposes-widespread-enforcement-fai.htmlTRAFFIC2010-03-02T14:37:45Z2010-03-02T14:37:45Z

Rhinos in southern Africa are being poached for their horns, used in Asian medicines Click photo to enlarge © Martin Harvey / WWF-Canon   Gland, Switzerland, 2 March 2010—The release of six alleged rhino poachers from custody two weeks before a meeting of the largest wildlife trade convention is emblematic of the chronic lack of political will to enact enforcement efforts required to save these endangered species.

A Zimbabwean court last week granted bail to six men arrested at Bubye Valley Conservancy, home to Zimbabwe’s largest remaining rhino population, in connection with rhino poaching.]]>