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	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
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		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/pangolins/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Sun, 08 Nov 2026 15:40:02 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<title>News on Pangolins</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/pangolins/</link>
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				<item>
					<title>Pangolin scale lawsuit in Indonesia could shake up how wildlife traffickers pay</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/pangolin-scale-lawsuit-in-indonesia-could-shake-up-how-wildlife-traffickers-pay/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/pangolin-scale-lawsuit-in-indonesia-could-shake-up-how-wildlife-traffickers-pay/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Oct 2026 07:53:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/10/28073343/a.-%C2%A9-thepunggolin-original-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=334087</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, Conservation, Corporations, Crime, Environment, Governance, Illegal Trade, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When customs officials at Jakarta’s Tanjung Priok Port opened a shipping container flagged for inspection in February 2026, they expected to find sea cucumbers and instant noodles as indicated on the consignment paperwork. Instead, they found 3,053 kilograms (6,730 pounds) of dried pangolin scales destined for Cambodia. It was among Indonesia’s largest seizures of the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When customs officials at Jakarta’s Tanjung Priok Port opened a shipping container flagged for inspection in February 2026, they expected to find sea cucumbers and instant noodles as indicated on the consignment paperwork. Instead, they found 3,053 kilograms (6,730 pounds) of dried pangolin scales destined for Cambodia. It was among Indonesia’s largest seizures of the illegal commodity in recent years, sparking an unusual lawsuit against the alleged offenders that experts say could be an innovative way to hold wildlife traffickers accountable for the damage they inflict upon ecosystems and biodiversity. As in many other countries, Indonesia primarily uses criminal laws to prosecute wildlife crimes, an approach that has historically resulted in relatively short prison sentences and fines that rarely approach maximum statutory penalties. However, Indonesian conservation NGO Science for Endangered and Trafficked Species (SCENTS) Foundation is taking a different approach. In parallel to the state-led criminal prosecution, the NGO has raised a civil lawsuit demanding the alleged traffickers pay to repair the ecological harm caused by removing thousands of pangolins from their wild habitats. “What was lost in this case was not merely three tonnes of scales,” Ma’ruf Erawan, director of SCENTS Foundation, said. “Behind those scales were thousands of pangolins removed from the wild, together with ecological functions and the values we all hold for Indonesian nature. The offenders must be held accountable for all the harm they caused.” The organization, represented legally by Jakarta-based law firm NET Attorney, filed the civil lawsuit on Sept. 2 at the East&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/pangolin-scale-lawsuit-in-indonesia-could-shake-up-how-wildlife-traffickers-pay/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-334087</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Chinese social media used to promote illegal wildlife trade in Laos</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/chinese-social-media-used-to-promote-illegal-wildlife-trade-in-laos/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/chinese-social-media-used-to-promote-illegal-wildlife-trade-in-laos/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Oct 2026 23:12:38 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mongabay.com]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/10/14225509/pangolin-hands-banner_6176-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=332530</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, China, East Asia, Laos, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporations, Crime, Governance, Mammals, Pangolins, Social Media, Wildlife, Wildlife consumption, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[“The wet markets in Laos are like wildlife parks; however, while you can only look at the animals in our zoos back in China, the wild animals in Lao markets can be eaten.” So proclaimed a Chinese vlogger as he toured a wildlife market. As he explored, he filmed himself showing off bear paws, various [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[“The wet markets in Laos are like wildlife parks; however, while you can only look at the animals in our zoos back in China, the wild animals in Lao markets can be eaten.” So proclaimed a Chinese vlogger as he toured a wildlife market. As he explored, he filmed himself showing off bear paws, various birds, dried rats, monitor lizards, and a live pangolin in his hands. The Chinese Embassy in Laos has issued repeated warnings to citizens that “Lao law prohibits the sale of ivory, rhinoceros horns, pangolins, and other wildlife products. Violators will be punished by law.” But vloggers continue to imply, incorrectly, that such sales are legal. “Brothers, look at what this is. This is not a zoo, but a wet market in Laos. The owner just weighed it and said it&#8217;s 3.3 kilograms for 1,200 Chinese yuan [about $54 per kilo or $24.60 per pound]. Back in China, let alone 3.3 kilograms, even for a single scale, you would have to go to jail,” he added, referring to the pangolin. Videos like this are easily found on Chinese social media platforms — WeChat Channels (known as Weixin Channels in mainland China), Douyin, and Xiaohongshu — using Chinese search terms like 老挝穿山甲 (Laowo chuanshanjia or Lao pangolin); 老挝野味 (laowo yewei or Lao wild game); and 老挝熊掌 (Laowo xiongzhang or Lao bear paw). With the opening of the China-Laos Railway in 2021 and the lifting of China&#8217;s pandemic lockdowns in early 2023, Laos has become a top choice&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/chinese-social-media-used-to-promote-illegal-wildlife-trade-in-laos/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/10/chinese-social-media-used-to-promote-illegal-wildlife-trade-in-laos/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-332530</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>‘How did you come to be here?’ Study digs into origins of Zambian wildlife crime</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/how-did-you-come-to-be-here-study-digs-into-origins-of-zambian-wildlife-crime/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/how-did-you-come-to-be-here-study-digs-into-origins-of-zambian-wildlife-crime/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>19 Sep 2026 21:22:46 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Alex Megerle]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/09/17070507/Elephants_Zambia_Fawaz_Tairou-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=329983</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Global, Southern Africa, and Zambia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Business, Conservation, Crime, Elephants, Environment, Governance, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Law, Mammals, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Poaching, Rhinos, Trade, trafficking, Ungulates, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[The man in the Zambian prison recalled how he ended up there. He’d been approached by someone who had an uncle in the capital, Lusaka, who was willing to buy ivory and pangolin scales. He gave the man a phone and a number to reach him. “He promised that the money I would get would [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[The man in the Zambian prison recalled how he ended up there. He’d been approached by someone who had an uncle in the capital, Lusaka, who was willing to buy ivory and pangolin scales. He gave the man a phone and a number to reach him. “He promised that the money I would get would enable me to build a house and take my children to school,” the man said. The story of this inmate — who was eventually arrested and incarcerated for an elephant-related offense — drives home an important truth. Wildlife crime is a multifaceted industry fueled by various participants with a slew of motives, ranging from local people who may occasionally capture and sell an animal to middlemen who handle logistics to heavily armed poaching gangs and the kingpins that rule over large international syndicates. The lower-level links in the chain are simpler to catch and prosecute, but are easily replaceable, so their arrest does little to stop poaching. The NGO Wildlife Crime Prevention (WCP) Zambia, in partnership with Copperbelt University, recently interviewed more than 300 inmates imprisoned for wildlife offenses in the country to learn how and why people on the lower rungs of the industry took their first steps into wildlife crime. “We wanted to understand better the drivers of the more grassroots-levels offenders and why they get involved — and how we might avoid them being involved again,” said one of the study&#8217;s authors, who needed to remain anonymous so not to endanger their&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/how-did-you-come-to-be-here-study-digs-into-origins-of-zambian-wildlife-crime/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/how-did-you-come-to-be-here-study-digs-into-origins-of-zambian-wildlife-crime/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-329983</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Electric fences that kill and the Maasai trying to save Kenya’s last giant pangolins</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/electric-fences-that-kill-and-the-maasai-trying-to-save-kenyas-last-giant-pangolins/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/electric-fences-that-kill-and-the-maasai-trying-to-save-kenyas-last-giant-pangolins/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Sep 2026 05:50:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Pauline Kairu]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/09/14160539/1.-Giant_Ground_Pangolin_BlackandWhite_willbl-tpp-42-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=329650</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Kenya]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation Solutions, Crime, Endangered Species, Governance, Mammals, Pangolins, Saving Species From Extinction, Solutions, Wildlife, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Naserian, a giant ground pangolin, lived for about two years in Kenya’s last remaining stronghold for this animal, Nyekweri Forest. When researchers from The Pangolin Project began tracking her in 2025, they observed her threading her way through a landscape where forests, farms and fences increasingly intersected. Each night, she emerged from the darkness of [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Naserian, a giant ground pangolin, lived for about two years in Kenya’s last remaining stronghold for this animal, Nyekweri Forest. When researchers from The Pangolin Project began tracking her in 2025, they observed her threading her way through a landscape where forests, farms and fences increasingly intersected. Each night, she emerged from the darkness of Nyekweri Forest and moved through a shifting mosaic of woodland, farms and grazing lands on the western fringes of Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve. Researchers watched on computer screens from their outpost near the reserve, tracking Naserian’s GPS signal as she followed familiar paths across a patchwork of privately owned parcels of land. Then one night, the signal stopped. A team from the Kenya-based pangolin research organization headed to the site. Naserian lay dead beneath an electrified fence. After years navigating a changing landscape, a single charged wire had ended her life. A landscape closing in Giant ground pangolins (Smutsia gigantea) are endangered across their fragmented Western and Central African range, with their numbers decreasing. Kenya’s only known population resides in Nyekweri, but it isn’t the safest place for them. Since 2022, researchers have recorded 15 deaths in the area, including 14 by electrocution on electric fences. With fewer than 30 believed to remain in Kenya, every death carries outsized consequences. The giant ground pangolin — the largest of the eight species, all of which live in Africa and Asia — occurs naturally at low densities. They normally give birth to just one offspring at&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/electric-fences-that-kill-and-the-maasai-trying-to-save-kenyas-last-giant-pangolins/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/09/electric-fences-that-kill-and-the-maasai-trying-to-save-kenyas-last-giant-pangolins/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-329650</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Nepal pushes for hydropower in protected areas through legal grey area</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-pushes-for-hydropower-in-protected-areas-through-legal-grey-area/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-pushes-for-hydropower-in-protected-areas-through-legal-grey-area/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Aug 2026 05:16:08 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Rudra Pangeni]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/23104302/%C2%A9-Rocky-Prajapati-DNPWC-WWF-Nepal-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=326743</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Global, Nepal, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Big Cats, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Cats, Conservation, Fish, Freshwater Fish, Mammals, National Parks, Pandas, Pangolins, Protected Areas, Snow Leopards, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU – Nepal’s government has allowed several private hydropower producers to develop projects inside protected areas and the buffer zones surrounding them, contravening a Supreme Court order, a Mongabay investigation reveals. In January 2025, the Supreme Court declared that a 2024 amendment to a key conservation law opening up protected areas to commercial projects was [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU – Nepal’s government has allowed several private hydropower producers to develop projects inside protected areas and the buffer zones surrounding them, contravening a Supreme Court order, a Mongabay investigation reveals. In January 2025, the Supreme Court declared that a 2024 amendment to a key conservation law opening up protected areas to commercial projects was “invalid” as it was against the constitutionally defined state policy of environment-friendly development and the principle of intergenerational equity. As the court is yet to publish the full text of the verdict, the government has interpreted the law and issued permits for development, the investigation aided by a right to information request finds. “To issue permits [for hydropower projects] inside protected areas is a misinterpretation of the court verdict,” said senior lawyer Prakash Mani Sharma Bhusal, one of the petitioners who took the government to court on July 28, 2024, over its decision to open protected areas to infrastructure such as hydropower plants and hotels. Kaligandaki hydropower dam in Nepal. Image by Krish Dulal via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). The court’s 2025 verdict came in response to a petition filed by lawyers led by Dil Raj Khanal, who argued that the 2024 amendment to the parks and conservation act, which came into effect on July 8, 2024, violated Article 30 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to a clean and healthy environment, and contradicted Nepal’s obligations under international treaties such as the Convention on Biological Diversity. Yet the Supreme Court has still not&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/nepal-pushes-for-hydropower-in-protected-areas-through-legal-grey-area/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-326743</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Laos’s illegal wildlife shops keep growing despite enforcement, investigators find</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/laoss-illegal-wildlife-shops-keep-growing-despite-enforcement-investigators-find/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/laoss-illegal-wildlife-shops-keep-growing-despite-enforcement-investigators-find/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>15 Jul 2026 01:34:22 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Gerald Flynn]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/14121851/baby-pagolin-in-market-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323316</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, China, Laos, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Bears, Biodiversity, Business, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Law Enforcement, Monkeys, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Poaching, Rhinos, Tigers, Tourism, Trade, Traditional Chinese Medicine, trafficking, Wildlife, Wildlife consumption, Wildlife Rescues, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BANGKOK — Schemes funneling Chinese tour groups through illegal wildlife shopping sites in Laos appear to be persisting and even expanding in spite of some law enforcement action by authorities, Mongabay has learned. In July 2025, a joint Mongabay investigation identified up to 21 illegal wildlife shopping sites embedded in package tours catering to Chinese [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BANGKOK — Schemes funneling Chinese tour groups through illegal wildlife shopping sites in Laos appear to be persisting and even expanding in spite of some law enforcement action by authorities, Mongabay has learned. In July 2025, a joint Mongabay investigation identified up to 21 illegal wildlife shopping sites embedded in package tours catering to Chinese nationals in the Laotian cites of Luang Prabang and Vientiane. Typically masquerading as cultural centers, restaurants, jewelry stores and the like, or as stores embedded in such venues, the shopping sites typically only showcase their products to Chinese-language tours run by Chinese and Laotian operators, while barring entry to anyone else. Since then, the number of these shops appears to have nearly doubled, according to multiple groups investigating these operations on the ground. Mongabay has seen evidence suggesting that as many as 35 shops are now operating in Luang Prabang and Vientiane, with 22 in the former and the rest in the latter. When Mongabay asked the Laotian Department of Forestry about the first 21 shops in mid-2025, a spokesperson suggested that at least some of them were not registered as retail shops and that they would investigate. Since then, authorities have made seizures of suspected illegal wildlife products at several shopping sites in Vientiane and Luang Prabang, including of nearly 50 kilograms (110 pounds) during inspections of 17 unnamed locations In November and December, and of more than 57 kg (126 lbs) at an unnamed location on June 13, according to local media reports.&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/laoss-illegal-wildlife-shops-keep-growing-despite-enforcement-investigators-find/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323316</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Suspect charged and manhunt continues over Jakarta 3-ton pangolin scales case</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/suspect-charged-and-manhunt-continues-over-jakarta-3-ton-pangolin-scales-case/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/suspect-charged-and-manhunt-continues-over-jakarta-3-ton-pangolin-scales-case/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jul 2026 11:42:29 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anggita Raissa]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/10113230/Bea-cuka-trenggiling-2-3X9A3130-scaled-1-1200x800-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=323045</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Environmental Law, Governance, Illegal Trade, Law, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Pangolins, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Indonesian authorities have charged one person and are pursuing at least two others in connection with one of the country&#8217;s largest wildlife trafficking cases, following the seizure of around $10 million worth of pangolin scales earlier this year. On Feb. 18, customs inspectors found 3,053 kilograms (6,731 pounds) of pangolin scales hidden in [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Indonesian authorities have charged one person and are pursuing at least two others in connection with one of the country&#8217;s largest wildlife trafficking cases, following the seizure of around $10 million worth of pangolin scales earlier this year. On Feb. 18, customs inspectors found 3,053 kilograms (6,731 pounds) of pangolin scales hidden in a shipping container at Jakarta’s Tanjung Priok Port, bound for Cambodia. The goods were declared as sea cucumbers in customs clearance documents. To date, police have detained only one suspect, identified as Tonni, who has been detained on remand in Jakarta, according to Bambang Ari Wibowo, investigator at Indonesia’s forestry ministry. “From the outset Tonni has confessed to knowing that the goods to be shipped were pangolin scales,” Bambang told Mongabay Indonesia in late June, adding that witnesses had corroborated this allegation. Prosecutors have filed charges against Tonni under Indonesia&#8217;s wildlife conservation law with illegally trading a protected species, an offense carrying a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison as well as a fine ranging from 200 million to 5 billion rupiah (about $11,000 to $276,000). In addition, investigators continue to determine whether two companies, PT Viena Trans Mandiri (VTM) and PT Temu Satu Rasa (TSR), the export agencies behind the shipment, should face further action. Mongabay Indonesia previously visited the registered address of TSR in Central Jakarta, but could find only an apparently vacant commercial premise next to a hair salon. A VTM representative declined to comment when eventually reached by phone. A&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/suspect-charged-and-manhunt-continues-over-jakarta-3-ton-pangolin-scales-case/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-323045</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Himalayan pangolin emerges as distinct species, 189 years after first described</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/himalayan-pangolin-emerges-as-distinct-species-189-years-after-first-described/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/himalayan-pangolin-emerges-as-distinct-species-189-years-after-first-described/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>07 Jul 2026 01:16:37 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/07/07004345/1.-Pangolin-from-Nepal-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=322689</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, China, Global, Myanmar, Nepal, South Asia, and Tibetan Plateau]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Mammals, Pangolins, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — The animal Brian Houghton Hodgson saw looked almost like a pangolin, but it didn&#8217;t tick all the boxes. It had amor-like scales from head to tail, just as the French zoologist Georges Cuvier had earlier described. But it also had ears and far more scales across its trunk than any recorded species. The [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — The animal Brian Houghton Hodgson saw looked almost like a pangolin, but it didn&#8217;t tick all the boxes. It had amor-like scales from head to tail, just as the French zoologist Georges Cuvier had earlier described. But it also had ears and far more scales across its trunk than any recorded species. The year was 1836. For the 35-year-old British diplomat and pioneering naturalist, who was confined to Nepal&#8217;s Kathmandu Valley, this demanded an investigation: Was it a new species, or just an outlier? Convinced he had come across an undescribed species, he gave the animal a name built entirely on those ears, Manis auritus: The Latin auritus translates to “with large ears.” But he hedged it with a backup name, Plurisquamis, &#8220;the many-scaled,&#8221; in case the ears turned out later to be an unremarkable feature. Nearly two centuries later, his question finally has a plausible answer. A team of scientists spanning Asia, the Americas and Europe has spent five years building the case that the pangolin Hodgson described in 1836 is in fact a separate species, distinct from the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) it had long been lumped together with and the seven other recorded species. Two-week-old Chinese pangolin clinging to mother at Taipei Zoo. Image courtesy of Suzi Eszterhas/New On Earth: Baby Animals in the Wild/Earth Aware Editions. Their recently published findings also establish its name, now called the Himalayan pangolin, and carry immediate consequences for conservation. Across their Africana and Asian ranges, they&#8217;re all endangered,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/07/himalayan-pangolin-emerges-as-distinct-species-189-years-after-first-described/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-322689</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Beyond wildlife trade: Endangered pangolins are losing habitat in Pakistan</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/beyond-wildlife-trade-endangered-pangolins-are-losing-habitat-in-pakistan/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/beyond-wildlife-trade-endangered-pangolins-are-losing-habitat-in-pakistan/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 Jun 2026 13:22:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Emma Smith]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/15121551/Manis-crassicaudata-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=321187</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Asia, China, Pakistan, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Endangered Species, Habitat, Habitat Loss, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Wildlife, Wildlife consumption, and Wildlife Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Tariq Mahmood was alarmed when he found 19 sacks tucked away in a railway tunnel in the Chakwal district of northern Pakistan. Their contents were extremely disturbing: 45 rotting pangolin carcasses, all devoid of their distinct, orange-and-light-brown scales. That was in 2012. “It was very difficult to see these innocent, dead bodies,” said Mahmood, a [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Tariq Mahmood was alarmed when he found 19 sacks tucked away in a railway tunnel in the Chakwal district of northern Pakistan. Their contents were extremely disturbing: 45 rotting pangolin carcasses, all devoid of their distinct, orange-and-light-brown scales. That was in 2012. “It was very difficult to see these innocent, dead bodies,” said Mahmood, a wildlife biologist at Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University in Pakistan, who began studying pangolins in 2009. Finding so many slain Indian pangolins (Manis crassicaudata) alerted Mahmood to a dark truth. Poachers were paying local citizens to capture them, so the overlapping scales that cover their bodies — the pangolin’s first line of defense — could be sold into the illegal wildlife trade. “It was terrible to know that.” At the time, global conservationists were realizing that demand for pangolin was driving trade, mostly to China. “We first saw the emergence of this intercontinental trafficking around 2010, and it&#8217;s continued to take place since then,” said Dan Challender, a pangolin expert at the University of Oxford who has studied international wildlife trade for 15 years. This shy, toothless, nocturnal animal has become the world’s most-trafficked mammal. When Asia’s four species were nearly poached to extinction, traders turned to the four African species and their numbers soon plummeted. All pangolins are on the IUCN Red list: Four of them, including the Indian pangolin, are endangered, and three hang on the brink, critically endangered. Pangolin scales command substantial prices on the black market. The demand is&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/06/beyond-wildlife-trade-endangered-pangolins-are-losing-habitat-in-pakistan/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-321187</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Nigeria aims for stronger wildlife protections with sweeping new law</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/nigeria-aims-for-stronger-wildlife-protections-with-sweeping-new-law/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/nigeria-aims-for-stronger-wildlife-protections-with-sweeping-new-law/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 May 2026 10:52:23 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Valentine Benjamin]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/13141332/WhiteBelliedPangolin.Phataginus-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=319185</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Nigeria, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, Forests, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, Trade, Wildlife Rangers, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In recent years, spectacular seizures of illegally trafficked wildlife products, including consignments of ivory and pangolin scales weighing several tons, have provided plenty of evidence of Nigeria’s position as a hub for international trafficking rings operating across Africa, Europe and Asia. In October 2025, the country’s Senate passed a new bill to strengthen the country’s [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In recent years, spectacular seizures of illegally trafficked wildlife products, including consignments of ivory and pangolin scales weighing several tons, have provided plenty of evidence of Nigeria’s position as a hub for international trafficking rings operating across Africa, Europe and Asia. In October 2025, the country’s Senate passed a new bill to strengthen the country’s wildlife legislation. As the bill awaits the president’s signature, its supporters say the country now has the basis for stronger wildlife protection on paper, but the government will need to provide agencies with the resources, coordination and political backing to enforce the law. “This new bill addresses long-existing gaps in our legal framework,” the bill’s sponsor and vice chair of the environment committee in the House of Representatives, Terseer Ugbor, told Mongabay in September 2025. “The old law was riddled with ambiguities. It failed to specify whether its provisions applied only to international wildlife trade or also to domestic transactions.” Despite many headline seizures of illegally trafficked wildlife, including pangolin scales and ivory, these busts rarely result in prosecution of traffickers. Mongabay previously examined official records covering the decade from 2012-21 and found just 11 cases had gone to court — just three convictions were secured. In each case, those found guilty paid a fine equivalent to $240 to avoid a three-year jail sentence. In interviews with prosecutors, enforcement officials, campaigners and traders at wildlife markets at the time, Mongabay heard that in most cases, seizures of contraband were not followed by investigation; the same&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/nigeria-aims-for-stronger-wildlife-protections-with-sweeping-new-law/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/nigeria-aims-for-stronger-wildlife-protections-with-sweeping-new-law/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-319185</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Facebook is a hub for illegal wildlife trade, and that’s by design, report says</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/facebook-is-a-hub-for-illegal-wildlife-trade-and-thats-by-design-report-says/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/facebook-is-a-hub-for-illegal-wildlife-trade-and-thats-by-design-report-says/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 May 2026 11:04:39 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/05/01050735/Tiger-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=318531</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Global, North America, and United States]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Gibbons, Illegal Trade, Law, Leopards, Mass Extinction, Pangolins, Regulations, Sea Turtles, Social Media, Technology, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[With just the click of a button or a swipe on a phone, it’s possible to buy almost anything online, including rare or endangered animals. From quirky shark trophies to exotic live birds, contraband rhino horns or ivory, buyers can flock to e-commerce platforms and find them all. Traffickers hide behind their screens while profiting [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[With just the click of a button or a swipe on a phone, it’s possible to buy almost anything online, including rare or endangered animals. From quirky shark trophies to exotic live birds, contraband rhino horns or ivory, buyers can flock to e-commerce platforms and find them all. Traffickers hide behind their screens while profiting from online sales of protected species as these animals dwindle in the wild. “It&#8217;s the largest wildlife market,” said wildlife trade researcher Chris Shepherd from the Center for Biological Diversity. “It&#8217;s easy, it&#8217;s convenient; you can operate anonymously from the comfort of your home. You don&#8217;t have the expenses of setting up a shop.” Online commerce in illicit wildlife products continues to grow, involving more species and wider geographies. It’s an illicit industry run by kingpins with well-connected networks, and it’s hard to prosecute. Catching online criminals is extremely challenging. “Wildlife markets have moved from physical locations into online locations, and that&#8217;s mirroring broader trends in the global economy,” said Simone Haysom, director of environmental crime programs at the Swiss-based organization Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. In a recent report, Haysom and her colleague Russell Gray analyzed online wildlife trade data from April 2024 to March 2026. They focused on 10 countries across three continents, places where environmental crime and internet use are high, making them fertile grounds for online wildlife trafficking. They found some 266,535 wildlife products posted on 61 online marketplaces, worth about $66 million. About 75% of the nearly 22,000 ads&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/05/facebook-is-a-hub-for-illegal-wildlife-trade-and-thats-by-design-report-says/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-318531</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Investigators eye organized crime links in 3-ton pangolin scale haul at Jakarta port</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/investigators-eye-organized-crime-links-in-3-ton-pangolin-scale-haul-at-jakarta-port/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/investigators-eye-organized-crime-links-in-3-ton-pangolin-scale-haul-at-jakarta-port/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Apr 2026 12:26:32 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anggita Raissa]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/04/24121549/Banten-Navy-Base-pangolin-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=318115</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Jakarta, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Habitat Loss, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, trafficking, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA, Indonesia – Customs and excise investigators in Jakarta continue to trace the origin of more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales found in late February inside a shipping container at Indonesia’s largest port. “This is still under investigation,” Suhartoyo, a lead customs investigator at Tanjung Priok Port told Mongabay Indonesia, adding that evidence [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA, Indonesia – Customs and excise investigators in Jakarta continue to trace the origin of more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales found in late February inside a shipping container at Indonesia’s largest port. “This is still under investigation,” Suhartoyo, a lead customs investigator at Tanjung Priok Port told Mongabay Indonesia, adding that evidence in the case remained in the container storage area in early April. On Feb. 18, customs officials at Tanjung Priok inspected a container declared as sea cucumbers and instant noodles, but found more than 3 metric tons of dried pangolin scales concealed in 99 boxes — an illicit haul valued at more than $10 million. Pangolins are insectivores clad entirely by scales made from keratin, the same protein as human hair and nails. These scales are prized by traditional healers in China and Vietnam, despite no scientific evidence that consuming them has any health benefits. All eight known species of pangolin in Africa and Asia are listed as threatened on the Red List maintained by the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. Investigators remain focused on the company identified as the exporter of the shipping container, PT Temu Satu Rasa (TSR), as well as a company that may have provided customs clearance services. A review of corporate records held by the Directorate General of General Legal Administration showed TSR was registered to address in the west of Jakarta, the capital city, in January. Mongabay Indonesia visited this address by a minimart on a busy street,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/investigators-eye-organized-crime-links-in-3-ton-pangolin-scale-haul-at-jakarta-port/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-318115</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Nepal, controversial dam threatens endangered pangolins: Study</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/in-nepal-controversial-dam-threatens-endangered-pangolins-study/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/in-nepal-controversial-dam-threatens-endangered-pangolins-study/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>22 Apr 2026 08:10:54 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Bibek Bhandari]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/23090420/29054818144_90d7ea0d1c_o-768x512-1.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=317904</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Nepal, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Dams, Endangered Species, Environment, Habitat Loss, Infrastructure, Pangolins, Pollution, Rivers, Water Pollution, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — A proposed dam in Kathmandu’s northeastern ridge promises to revive the sewage-choked sacred Bagmati River that runs past revered Hindu temples and ease the valley’s chronic water shortage. But conservationists warn that the project could exact a high ecological cost, even potentially impacting critically endangered wildlife within the Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park, where [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — A proposed dam in Kathmandu’s northeastern ridge promises to revive the sewage-choked sacred Bagmati River that runs past revered Hindu temples and ease the valley’s chronic water shortage. But conservationists warn that the project could exact a high ecological cost, even potentially impacting critically endangered wildlife within the Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park, where the dam is set to rise. A new study in Ecology and Evolution journal states that the Nagmati Dam will inundate large parts of potential prime pangolin habitat and foraging areas, noting that the project’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) “overlooks this threat” and fails to recognize the impacts on the species. The national park is home to the critically endangered Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla), protected under Nepal’s conservation law. “Pangolins have a small home range and specific habitat needs, so the impact on almost 100 hectares [247 acres] of area because of the dam will have big consequences for them,” said Kumar Paudel, a pangolin specialist from the nonprofit Greenhood Nepal and co-author of the study. “We need to be extremely careful about the impacts on biodiversity while developing infrastructure projects. This is not just about pangolins but other species, too,” he said. The proposed site of the Nagmati Dam is said to be on the base of the hills that surround Mulkharka. Image by Bibek Bhandari. The planned Nagmati Dam — a 95-meter (311-foot) barrier with a capacity to store more than 8 billion liters (2.1 billion gallons) of water — aims to capture monsoon&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/04/in-nepal-controversial-dam-threatens-endangered-pangolins-study/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-317904</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Asia now hub of growing illegal wildlife trade across 100+ countries, study shows</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/asia-now-hub-of-growing-illegal-wildlife-trade-across-100-countries-study-shows/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/asia-now-hub-of-growing-illegal-wildlife-trade-across-100-countries-study-shows/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>30 Mar 2026 17:28:45 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Sharon Guynup]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/30124127/Chinese-Pangolin-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=316529</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Europe, and Global]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Elephants, Environment, Environmental Law, Illegal Trade, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Poaching, Rhinos, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Wildlife trade is decimating the planet’s biodiversity, driving declines in more than 31,500 wild species and spreading infectious zoonotic diseases that jump between wildlife, livestock and humans. In addition to massive legal, regulated trade, there’s widespread illicit trafficking in both live animals and high-demand, profitable animal products, a commerce worth at least $20 billion per [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Wildlife trade is decimating the planet’s biodiversity, driving declines in more than 31,500 wild species and spreading infectious zoonotic diseases that jump between wildlife, livestock and humans. In addition to massive legal, regulated trade, there’s widespread illicit trafficking in both live animals and high-demand, profitable animal products, a commerce worth at least $20 billion per year. Dubbed “one of the world’s largest criminal activities,” wildlife ranks among the most lucrative smuggled goods, a list that includes guns, drugs and humans — but with way lower risks. Yet, there’s patchy data on how this trade has grown over the years; what species are trafficked; and where the hotspots are. What we do know comes from law enforcement seizures, which are often just the tip of the iceberg. “Much of what we know about [illegal wildlife trade] is based on static estimates, isolated case studies or regional snapshots, rather than long-term, system-level analyses,” said researcher Tow Jia Hao at the National University of Singapore. “[It] is a difficult picture to piece together and tackle, especially with much of the pieces still being hidden.” To fill the knowledge gaps, Hao and his colleagues analyzed data on illegal wildlife trade from the last two decades (2000 – 2019), and compared it with legal trade data. They gathered seizure data from TRAFFIC’s Wildlife Trade Portal and collected information on permitted wildlife trade from the CITES legal trade database, which records all legitimate commerce in species listed under a global wildlife treaty, CITES. They mapped out&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/asia-now-hub-of-growing-illegal-wildlife-trade-across-100-countries-study-shows/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/asia-now-hub-of-growing-illegal-wildlife-trade-across-100-countries-study-shows/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-316529</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Jakarta port authorities seize 3 tons of pangolin scales in Cambodia-bound container</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/jakarta-port-authorities-seize-3-tons-of-pangolin-scales-in-cambodia-bound-container/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/jakarta-port-authorities-seize-3-tons-of-pangolin-scales-in-cambodia-bound-container/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Mar 2026 07:58:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Anggita Raissa]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mongabay Editor]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/03/19102143/B-3X9A3024-scaled-e1773522042796-1536x927-1-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=315950</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Jakarta, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Habitat Loss, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, trafficking, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Customs inspectors at the Indonesian capital’s main port uncovered more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales in a shipping container bound for Cambodia in late February, in one of the largest seizures of the critically endangered mammal in years. “We are committed to tightening export controls and taking firm action against any [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[JAKARTA — Customs inspectors at the Indonesian capital’s main port uncovered more than 3 metric tons of pangolin scales in a shipping container bound for Cambodia in late February, in one of the largest seizures of the critically endangered mammal in years. “We are committed to tightening export controls and taking firm action against any violations that threaten wildlife sustainability and harm the state,” Adhang Noegroho Adhi, the head of the Customs and Excise office at Tanjung Priok Port, said in a statement announcing the investigation in March. Pangolins are the only mammals covered head to toe in scales. This armor offers protection in the wild, but makes pangolins easy prey in a global wildlife trade worth up to $23 billion annually. The mammal’s scales, which are made from the same protein as human hair and nails, are prized by traditional healers in China and parts of Southeast Asia, despite the scales possessing no scientifically proven medicinal benefits. Adhang Noegroho Adhi, head of Tanjung Priok customs and excise office, at a press conference in March. Image by Tanjung Priok Customs Public Relations. On Feb. 18, officials became suspicious of a 20-foot shipping container after reviewing documentation provided by the exporter, PT TSR. According to the consignment document, the container held only sea cucumbers and instant noodles. However, a scan of the container showed three separate storage areas, raising suspicions of unreported goods inside. Officials then began an inspection of the crate. Inside, they found 99 boxes containing dried pangolin scales,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/jakarta-port-authorities-seize-3-tons-of-pangolin-scales-in-cambodia-bound-container/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-315950</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Protecting pangolins IRL, not just on paper: Interview with conservationist Kumar Paudel</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/protecting-pangolins-irl-not-just-on-paper-interview-with-conservationist-kumar-paudel/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/protecting-pangolins-irl-not-just-on-paper-interview-with-conservationist-kumar-paudel/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Nov 2025 06:43:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Abhaya Raj Joshi]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/11/24062048/0d2e956a-6a28-4b8a-82ca-1e2141a82816-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=309998</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Atlantic Forest, India, Nepal, and South Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Biodiversity, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Indigenous Peoples, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, Traditional Medicine, and Wildlife Trade]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — Of the eight known species of pangolins found in Asia and Africa, three are listed as critically endangered on the Red List that’s maintained by the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. Two of those three species of scaly anteaters are found in Nepal, where they’re officially accorded the highest level of protection [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[KATHMANDU — Of the eight known species of pangolins found in Asia and Africa, three are listed as critically endangered on the Red List that’s maintained by the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. Two of those three species of scaly anteaters are found in Nepal, where they’re officially accorded the highest level of protection for wildlife. “It’s on a par with tigers and rhinos, but this legal status hasn&#8217;t translated into conservation investment or priority,” says Kumar Paudel, a pangolin researcher and founder of Greenhood Nepal, a conservation NGO. That’s left Nepal’s pangolins, and indeed pangolins everywhere, highly threatened by the illegal trade for their meat and, in particular, their scales — prized in East Asia for their purported medicinal properties. Today, pangolins are known as the most trafficked wild mammals in the world. More than a million of the animals may have been “snatched from the wild” in the past decade, according to the IUCN’s Pangolin Specialist Group. Paudel, the group’s vice chair for Asia, says a significant proportion of that poaching and trafficking may have taken place in South Asia. This could be attributed to the region’s proximity to East and Southeast Asia, where demand is highest, he says. Conservationist and researcher Kumar Paudel (seated in the middle, extreme right) talks to community members about pangolins. Image courtesy of Kumar Paudel In 2016, the Pangolin Specialist Group came up with a global action plan focused on boosting knowledge of the species, curbing the illegal trade, identifying and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/protecting-pangolins-irl-not-just-on-paper-interview-with-conservationist-kumar-paudel/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/protecting-pangolins-irl-not-just-on-paper-interview-with-conservationist-kumar-paudel/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-309998</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In southeast Nigeria, pangolins hunted for meat, not scales, study finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/in-southeast-nigeria-pangolins-hunted-for-meat-not-scales-study-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/in-southeast-nigeria-pangolins-hunted-for-meat-not-scales-study-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Sep 2025 18:18:07 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/09/10145805/White-bellied-pangolin-Edited-e1757522289509.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=305728</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Nigeria, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Forests, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, Traditional Medicine, trafficking, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When headline after headline highlights tons of pangolin scale seizures in Nigeria, it’s easy to presume that most pangolin poaching in the country is driven by the international demand for the scales. A recently published research, however, finds that in Nigeria’s Cross River state, pangolins are hunted for their meat — much-prized locally — rather [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When headline after headline highlights tons of pangolin scale seizures in Nigeria, it’s easy to presume that most pangolin poaching in the country is driven by the international demand for the scales. A recently published research, however, finds that in Nigeria’s Cross River state, pangolins are hunted for their meat — much-prized locally — rather than for scales, with implications for conservation actions to protect the world’s most trafficked mammal. When Charles Emogor, who hails from southeast Nigeria, started his Ph.D. research at the University of Cambridge, U.K., he expected to find that the demand for scales for traditional medicine in East Asia is a leading driver for hunting pangolins, as has been documented elsewhere. Nigeria is a pangolin trade hub with nearly 190 tons of scales seized in the country between 2010 and 2021, estimated to have come from around 800,000 African pangolins, according to a 2021 study co-authored by Emogor. The Cross River forest landscape lies in a biodiversity hotspot and is home to three species of pangolins: the vulnerable black-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tetradactyla), the endangered white-bellied pangolin (P. tricuspis) and the endangered giant pangolin (Smutsia gigantea). Study co-author Charles Emogor holding a white-bellied pangolin retrieved from a hunter who participated in the study. Prior to starting his research in Cross River, Emogor expected to find that demand for scales for traditional medicine in Southeast Asia is a leading driver for hunting pangolins, as has been documented elsewhere. Image courtesy of Alex Moore. While hunting pangolins — for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/in-southeast-nigeria-pangolins-hunted-for-meat-not-scales-study-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/09/in-southeast-nigeria-pangolins-hunted-for-meat-not-scales-study-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-305728</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>To save pangolins, we need to change the narrative (commentary)</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/to-save-pangolins-we-need-to-change-the-narrative-commentary/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/to-save-pangolins-we-need-to-change-the-narrative-commentary/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>28 Jul 2025 14:35:21 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Araluen Schunmann]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Erik Hoffner]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/16125446/Philippine_Pangolin_Curled-up_by_Gregg_Yan-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=303221</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa and Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Commentary, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Endangered Species, Environment, Film, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Despite being the world’s most heavily trafficked mammal — more than elephants, rhinos and tigers combined — pangolins remain virtually unknown to the public. These shy, scaly creatures are primarily hunted for their scales, which are frequently used in traditional Asian medicines. Despite international protections, illegal trafficking of these animals continues, and with it, the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Despite being the world’s most heavily trafficked mammal — more than elephants, rhinos and tigers combined — pangolins remain virtually unknown to the public. These shy, scaly creatures are primarily hunted for their scales, which are frequently used in traditional Asian medicines. Despite international protections, illegal trafficking of these animals continues, and with it, the quiet collapse of wild pangolin populations across Asia and Africa. Part of conservationists’ challenge is increasing the visibility of the threats these species face. Pangolins don’t have the public profile of elephants or lions and aren’t instantly recognizable to the general public. They’re not often visible to safari tourists, rarely show up in children’s books or blockbuster nature documentaries, and, until recently, they rarely made headlines. In a media environment that often elevates the largest or most brightly colored animals, pangolins have been left out of the conservation spotlight. But that’s starting to change, and one reason for that is storytelling. The new Netflix documentary Pangolin: Kulu’s Journey is a powerful example of what can happen when the media shines a light on a lesser-known species. Promotional images of the new Netflix documentary Pangolin: Kulu&#8217;s Journey. Through the lens of a rescued pangolin and the conservationists working to protect him, the film gives audiences a window into a crisis that has long flown under the radar, and highlights the intelligence of these often-forgotten creatures. Perhaps more importantly, it shows that these animals are worth knowing, worth protecting, and still have a chance to thrive in&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/to-save-pangolins-we-need-to-change-the-narrative-commentary/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/07/to-save-pangolins-we-need-to-change-the-narrative-commentary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-303221</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Pandemic-era slump in ivory and pangolin scale trafficking persists, report finds</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>17 Jun 2025 08:31:03 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/17082738/White-belliedPangolin_Gabon_BureaubenjaminINaturalistBYNC4.0-768x512.jpeg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300838</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Angola, Asia, Cameroon, Central Africa, China, Democratic Republic Of Congo, East Asia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Uganda, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Bushmeat, Conservation, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Ecology, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Forests, Hunting, Ivory, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Over-hunting, Pangolins, Poaching, Rainforests, Tropical Forests, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A recent report surveying seizures of pangolin scales and elephant ivory over the past decade has found a sharp decline following the COVID-19 pandemic. Using data from media reports, public documents, and criminal intelligence and investigations, analysts at the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC) found authorities seized more than 370 metric tons of pangolin scales and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A recent report surveying seizures of pangolin scales and elephant ivory over the past decade has found a sharp decline following the COVID-19 pandemic. Using data from media reports, public documents, and criminal intelligence and investigations, analysts at the Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC) found authorities seized more than 370 metric tons of pangolin scales and 193 metric tons of elephant ivory between 2015 and 2024. Seizures began to ramp up in 2015, peaked in 2019, and then declined sharply in 2020. The report found that the pandemic disruption to trade and travel, coinciding with increased enforcement based on intelligence, prompted these declines. Post-pandemic, the decline in trade has continued to hold as countries intensify law enforcement and intelligence gathering. “The report was motivated by a need to present up-to-date findings and offer a current assessment of the evolving criminal dynamics surrounding ivory and pangolin scale trafficking,” Olivia Swaak-Goldman, WJC’s executive director, told Mongabay by email. “From our investigations, we knew there had been some major changes since our last reports … so it was timely to publish updated analysis and highlight these shifts.” Pangolin scales act as armor to protect their body. The WJC report estimates that the 370 tons of pangolin scales seized over the past decade would have come from anywhere between 100,000 and a million pangolins. Image by flowcomm via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). Pangolin scales, used in traditional medicine, are in high demand in East Asia. Over the past decade, as Asian pangolin numbers plummeted,&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/pandemic-era-slump-in-ivory-and-pangolin-scale-trafficking-persists-report-finds/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-300838</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>High-profile wildlife trafficking case tests Malawi’s conservation commitment</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/high-profile-wildlife-trafficking-case-tests-malawis-conservation-commitment/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/high-profile-wildlife-trafficking-case-tests-malawis-conservation-commitment/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Jun 2025 11:23:51 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Madalitso Wills Kateta]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Terna Gyuse]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[africa]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/10111513/pangolin-africa-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300485</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Malawi]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Crime, Environment, Environmental Law, Illegal Trade, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Organized Crime, Pangolins, Poaching, Rhinos, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[LILONGWE — In 2021, Malawian authorities found Lin Yunhua and 14 other members of an international trafficking syndicate in possession of pangolin scales, rhino horns, and elephant and hippo ivory. Lin, a Chinese national, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Since his sentencing, Lin has been linked with several corrupt efforts to avoid the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[LILONGWE — In 2021, Malawian authorities found Lin Yunhua and 14 other members of an international trafficking syndicate in possession of pangolin scales, rhino horns, and elephant and hippo ivory. Lin, a Chinese national, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Since his sentencing, Lin has been linked with several corrupt efforts to avoid the full consequences of his sentencing — seemingly even obtaining a pardon — but the Southern African country’s criminal justice system has held firm, a sign of the successful strengthening of wildlife law enforcement. A 2015 report written for Malawi’s Department of National Parks and Wildlife of Malawi described the country’s position as a transit hub for trafficking, and the 2021 arrests and successful prosecution of traffickers was welcomed by civil society. “We’re very pleased to see this notorious wildlife crime kingpin finally face the music with a stiff sentence of 14 years in prison and trust that it sends a crystal-clear message to other wildlife criminals plundering Africa’s natural resources that they are not beyond the reach of the law,” Mary Rice, executive director of the U.K.-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), said in a press release at the time. “I believe today’s judgment and the destruction of the Lin-Zhang gang will prove to be a pivotal moment in Malawi’s commitment to bring high-level wildlife criminals to justice.” Lin Yunhua, right, pictured with another member of the trafficking syndicate, Jimmy Mkwelezalemba. Mkwelezalemba was sentenced to three years in prison for pangolin smuggling in 2019. Image from&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/high-profile-wildlife-trafficking-case-tests-malawis-conservation-commitment/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/high-profile-wildlife-trafficking-case-tests-malawis-conservation-commitment/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-300485</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>How trafficking &#038; misconceptions threaten Nigeria&#8217;s wildlife: Q&#038;A with Dr. Mark Ofua</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/how-trafficking-misconceptions-threaten-nigerias-wildlife-qa-with-dr-mark-ofua/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/how-trafficking-misconceptions-threaten-nigerias-wildlife-qa-with-dr-mark-ofua/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jun 2025 17:17:26 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Samuel Ogunsona]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Karen Coates]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/06155148/1000025286-e1749226419735-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300336</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Nigeria, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Fellows, Pangolins, Wildlife, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[In a significant blow to wildlife trafficking, Nigerian authorities recently seized 2 metric tons of pangolin scales, worth tens of thousands of dollars on the black market, and arrested a suspect believed to be a key broker, according to a recent Mongabay report. This operation, carried out by the Nigeria Customs Service with intelligence from [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[In a significant blow to wildlife trafficking, Nigerian authorities recently seized 2 metric tons of pangolin scales, worth tens of thousands of dollars on the black market, and arrested a suspect believed to be a key broker, according to a recent Mongabay report. This operation, carried out by the Nigeria Customs Service with intelligence from the Wildlife Justice Commission, highlights the country&#8217;s efforts to combat transnational wildlife trafficking networks, a growing concern in Nigeria, with many endangered species being hunted and traded for bushmeat or sold on the black market. Pangolins are listed as threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with all eight species facing significant conservation challenges due to habitat loss, poaching and trade. In Nigeria, pangolins are protected under Schedule 1 of the Endangered Species (Control of International Trade and Traffic) Decree No. 11 (1985). Current population numbers are not readily available, though reports suggest their numbers are declining. Unfortunately, misconceptions and a lack of awareness about the importance of conservation have exacerbated the problem, contributing to the decline of not just pangolins, but many species in Nigeria. In this interview, Mongabay spoke with Dr. Mark Ofua, a dedicated Nigerian wildlife conservationist, popularly known as the “Snake Man of Lagos.” Interestingly, Ofua&#8217;s choice to study veterinary medicine defies Nigeria&#8217;s societal norms, in which parents often prioritize human medicine, engineering or nursing and students studying in unconventional fields could be made to feel shameful for their pursuits. Ofua shares his insights on these issues and his efforts&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/how-trafficking-misconceptions-threaten-nigerias-wildlife-qa-with-dr-mark-ofua/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/how-trafficking-misconceptions-threaten-nigerias-wildlife-qa-with-dr-mark-ofua/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-300336</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>China drops pangolin formulas from approved TCM list, but concerns remain</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/china-drops-pangolin-formulas-from-approved-tcm-list-but-concerns-remain/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/china-drops-pangolin-formulas-from-approved-tcm-list-but-concerns-remain/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 May 2025 10:14:24 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2021/05/26110919/03-Must-credit_-Paul-Hilton-for-Earth-Tree-Images-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=299186</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[China]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Conservation, Crime, Pangolins, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Wildlife conservation activists have welcomed an update to China’s list of officially sanctioned medicines, which drops 13 traditional formulas containing pangolin parts. The move offers the world’s most trafficked mammal a better shot at survival and has raised cautious optimism among conservationists. China’s pharmacopeia, the country’s official compendium of approved traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Wildlife conservation activists have welcomed an update to China’s list of officially sanctioned medicines, which drops 13 traditional formulas containing pangolin parts. The move offers the world’s most trafficked mammal a better shot at survival and has raised cautious optimism among conservationists. China’s pharmacopeia, the country’s official compendium of approved traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Western drugs, has been updated with a new edition, according to a recent announcement by the National Medical Products Administration and the National Health Commission.  Set to take effect on Oct. 1, 2025, this year’s update no longer includes any pangolin-based TCM, either as raw ingredients or in formula. In total, there are 19 medicines delisted, the government states. Christina Vallianos, wildlife program director at U.S.-based NGO WildAid, said the 2025 update builds on a 2020 change that removed pangolin scales as a raw ingredient but kept formulas containing them, continuing to drive demand. Vallianos said these patented medicines are produced by more than 200 licensed manufacturers using pangolin scales from a government-regulated stockpile, though the number of manufacturers appears to have declined since 2018.  The new edition removes official recognition from all TCM products sourced from pangolin scales, both raw and in formulas, marking a significant step forward. “I do think it sends a positive signal — it’s a step in the right direction,” Vallianos told Mongabay by phone. “Many people refer to the pharmacopoeia for teaching and practice, so having pangolin products removed is huge.” Among the excluded formulas is guilingji, a traditional&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/china-drops-pangolin-formulas-from-approved-tcm-list-but-concerns-remain/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/china-drops-pangolin-formulas-from-approved-tcm-list-but-concerns-remain/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-299186</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Indonesian pangolin trafficking prosecution reveals police involvement — and impunity</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/indonesian-pangolin-trafficking-prosecution-reveals-police-involvement-and-impunity/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/indonesian-pangolin-trafficking-prosecution-reveals-police-involvement-and-impunity/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 May 2025 02:54:27 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Ayat S. Karokaro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/05/13152750/Trenggiling_Sunda_Sunda_Pangolin_Manis_javanica-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=299010</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, North Sumatra, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Crime, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Environmental Law, Illegal Trade, Law, Law Enforcement, Mammals, Pangolins, Poaching, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[ASAHAN, Indonesia – On Nov. 11, 2024, Alfi Simatupang, a police officer in Asahan district on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, was arrested along with two soldiers and a civilian for allegedly attempting to traffic nearly 1.2 metric tons of pangolin scales. Since that bust, the civilian, Amir Simatupang, has gone on trial; the soldiers, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[ASAHAN, Indonesia – On Nov. 11, 2024, Alfi Simatupang, a police officer in Asahan district on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, was arrested along with two soldiers and a civilian for allegedly attempting to traffic nearly 1.2 metric tons of pangolin scales. Since that bust, the civilian, Amir Simatupang, has gone on trial; the soldiers, Muhammad Yusuf Harahap and Rahmadani Syahputra, are undergoing a court-martial; while Alfi, the alleged mastermind of the trafficking plot, has not only avoided prosecution, but even been promoted. This glaring disparity in the way the case is being prosecuted has highlighted once again the apparent impunity enjoyed by law enforcement officers accused of wildlife crimes in Indonesia, observers say. “This is not the first case involving [law enforcement] officials,” Marison Guciano, co-founder of the nonprofit conservation NGO Flight Indonesia Foundation, said in response to the case. “There’s big money in the illegal wildlife business.” The case came to light last November when a joint team of police, military police and environment ministry enforcement officers received a tip about a potential trade in pangolin scales. They first arrested Yusuf, one of the soldiers, who was found driving a pickup truck loaded with boxes containing a combined 320 kilograms (705 pounds) of pangolin scales. The raid also netted the second soldier, Syahputra, along with Alfi and Amir, is alleged to be the middleman connecting the sellers to a buyer in Aceh province. A search of Yusuf’s home uncovered another 858 kg (1,892 lbs) of pangolin scales, for&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/05/indonesian-pangolin-trafficking-prosecution-reveals-police-involvement-and-impunity/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-299010</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Singapore biobank offers backup plan for pangolins</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 Apr 2025 22:20:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Claire Turrell]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/04/10215243/Pangolin-1_Credit-Mandai-Wildlife-Group-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=297470</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Singapore, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Captive Breeding, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Endangered Species, Environment, Ex-situ Conservation, Mammals, Pangolins, Wildlife, and Wildtech]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — A cloud of condensation rises as Shangari Sekar, the assistant laboratory manager for Mandai Wildlife Group, carefully lifts a ladle filled with vials from the center of a cryo tank. She moves slowly as the cargo is precious: within the vials are the genetic building blocks for pangolins, the most trafficked mammals on [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[SINGAPORE — A cloud of condensation rises as Shangari Sekar, the assistant laboratory manager for Mandai Wildlife Group, carefully lifts a ladle filled with vials from the center of a cryo tank. She moves slowly as the cargo is precious: within the vials are the genetic building blocks for pangolins, the most trafficked mammals on Earth. With the future looking bleak for these scaly anteaters, scientists have launched a pangolin biobank to help ensure they live on. Dr. Sonja Luz, CEO of Mandai Nature, the wildlife group’s conservation arm, says they’ve taken this step to create a safety buffer: “We are really worried we are getting too many ‘too little, too late’ scenarios.” There are four known pangolin species native to Asia and four to Africa, and all populations are declining. Poaching and habitat loss have pushed all eight species into the threatened category on the IUCN Red List. Singapore is home to the critically endangered Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica), which is also found in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam. “The Sunda pangolin has seen its population decline by over 50% in the last 15 years due to high levels of poaching driven by the illegal wildlife trade,” says Uma Sachidhanandam, director of conservation and science for WWF in Singapore. Demand for their scales, which are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, has made pangolin the world&#8217;s most trafficked mammals. Image courtesy of Mandai Wildlife Group. The international trade in wild pangolins is banned under CITES, the global wildlife&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/04/singapore-biobank-offers-backup-plan-for-pangolins/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-297470</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Pangolin burrows are biodiversity magnets in burnt forests, study shows</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/pangolin-burrows-are-biodiversity-magnets-in-burnt-forests-study-shows/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/pangolin-burrows-are-biodiversity-magnets-in-burnt-forests-study-shows/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>20 Feb 2025 11:46:17 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Spoorthy Raman]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Morgan Erickson-Davis]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/02/20100256/%E7%9B%91%E6%B5%8B%E4%B8%8E%E6%94%BE%E7%94%9F-22-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=294723</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[China]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animal Behavior, Animals, Biodiversity, Ecosystems, Endangered Species, Mammals, Pangolins, Research, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Pangolins, the world’s most trafficked mammals, hit the headlines more often for the illegal trade in their scales and meat than for their cherished role in their environment. As insectivores, these scaly anteaters feast on termites and ants and keep their numbers in check. By digging burrows with their powerful claws, they turn soil and [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Pangolins, the world’s most trafficked mammals, hit the headlines more often for the illegal trade in their scales and meat than for their cherished role in their environment. As insectivores, these scaly anteaters feast on termites and ants and keep their numbers in check. By digging burrows with their powerful claws, they turn soil and cycle nutrients. Their abandoned burrows become home for many reptiles, birds and other small mammals. A recent study adds new evidence to the pangolin’s role in the environment as ecosystem engineers. The study, published in the journal Global Ecology and Conservation, finds that burrows dug up by Chinese pangolins (Manis pentadactyla) encourage the growth of plants and provide shelter to surviving animals in forests devastated by fires. It presents the first qualitative evidence for pangolins’ role in accelerating the recovery of degraded ecosystems, such as burned forests. “For a very long time, people have speculated that pangolins play a critical role in the ecosystem,” says conservation ecologist Matthew Shirley from Florida International University and co-chair of the Pangolin Specialist Group at the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority, who wasn’t involved in the study. But qualitative evidence for their role as ecosystem engineers has been missing because collecting such data “is a really challenging thing,” he says. The researchers of the study cataloged the animal species using the burrows and recorded the plant species at each site in 2021 and 2022. Image courtesy of Song Sun. Since all eight known pangolin species in the world&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/pangolin-burrows-are-biodiversity-magnets-in-burnt-forests-study-shows/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-294723</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>How ‘country palm’ could help pave the way toward a sustainable palm oil future in Liberia</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/how-country-palm-could-help-pave-the-way-toward-a-sustainable-palm-oil-future-in-liberia/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/how-country-palm-could-help-pave-the-way-toward-a-sustainable-palm-oil-future-in-liberia/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>18 Feb 2025 23:49:35 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Louise Hunt]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Morgan Erickson-Davis]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/02/18231144/Tree_pangolin_Phataginus_tricuspis_Nyamebe_Bepo_4-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=294649</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Regenerative landscapes]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, Liberia, and West Africa]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Agroforestry, Birds, Commodity agriculture, Endangered Species, Environment, Forest Loss, Forest Regeneration, Forests, Green, Habitat Loss, Industrial Agriculture, Palm Oil, Pangolins, Parrots, Plantations, Rainforests, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Across southeastern Liberia, oil palms grow wild in the forest. Known as “country palm,” the Elaeis guineensis tree is native to West Africa and treasured by local communities. “In the rural areas where there are palms in the wild, if you want to farm in those areas people will say to you, ‘Do not cut [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Across southeastern Liberia, oil palms grow wild in the forest. Known as “country palm,” the Elaeis guineensis tree is native to West Africa and treasured by local communities. “In the rural areas where there are palms in the wild, if you want to farm in those areas people will say to you, ‘Do not cut down the palm trees!’” says James Otto, program coordinator at the Sustainable Development Institute, an environmental and community rights NGO based in Liberia. “The palm is usable by everybody, it’s not one person to a palm tree.” Harvesting the fruit is traditionally a communal effort, and it’s manually processed into cooking oil and butter that’s then used in almost every dish, along with multiple other household and medicinal purposes. Selling products made from country palm at the local market has long been a source of income for subsistence farmers. “I remember my grandfather doing that,” Otto says. “But it is not only for livelihood purposes, it has a serious tie with our culture, with our way of life.” A woman with country palm fruit that she has harvested. Image by Michael Pashkevich. He cites the example of traditional leaders visiting from other parts of Liberia where there was no wild palm to obtain and bring back seeds, “so they would germinate in their own land areas, so it’s a key tradition for the people of Liberia.” Wild oil palm is not only beneficial for communities, but for birds and mammals too; it’s native to one&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/how-country-palm-could-help-pave-the-way-toward-a-sustainable-palm-oil-future-in-liberia/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-294649</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>China&#8217;s pangolin scale trade declines, study shows, but smuggling persists</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/chinas-pangolin-scale-trade-declines-study-shows-but-smuggling-persists-2/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/chinas-pangolin-scale-trade-declines-study-shows-but-smuggling-persists-2/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>14 Feb 2025 23:45:52 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/02/13045004/30988465265_c121b8f268_o-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=294515</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[China]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Endangered Species, Illegal Trade, Pangolins, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[An analysis of Chinese court records from 2010 to 2023 finds that pangolin scale seizures in the country peaked in 2018 before beginning a steady decline.  The paper attributes this to increased enforcement and public awareness in China, but observers cite global factors like the COVID-19 pandemic and stronger enforcement in source and transit countries, [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[An analysis of Chinese court records from 2010 to 2023 finds that pangolin scale seizures in the country peaked in 2018 before beginning a steady decline.  The paper attributes this to increased enforcement and public awareness in China, but observers cite global factors like the COVID-19 pandemic and stronger enforcement in source and transit countries, warning the scale of the trade may be higher due to underreporting and its clandestine nature. In the recent study, published in Nature, experts from South China Normal University analyzed 390 cases of illegal pangolin scale trade recorded from 2010 to 2023 in China Judgments Online, the country&#8217;s most authoritative and comprehensive case adjudication platform. Using geospatial and statistical methods, the study found that most confiscated scales originated in Africa, and were funneled through six key Chinese cities, known for their thriving traditional medicine markets, international trade links, and strategic locations. The researchers had previously analyzed the same database to track seizures of pangolin meat, which they found to be consumed on a limited scale as a luxury item and status symbol mainly in southern China. By contrast, pangolin scales are consumed for medicinal purposes and used in many Chinese regions. The analysis of court cases related to pangolin scales attributed the drop in reported seizures to heightened enforcement and growing public awareness efforts across the country.   “We think that this was closely related to the strong intervention in wildlife-related violations in recent years in China and the vigorous development of wildlife conservation education, including&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/02/chinas-pangolin-scale-trade-declines-study-shows-but-smuggling-persists-2/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-294515</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Vietnam grapples with ‘alarming popularity’ of online illegal wildlife trade</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/vietnam-grapples-with-alarming-popularity-of-online-illegal-wildlife-trade/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/vietnam-grapples-with-alarming-popularity-of-online-illegal-wildlife-trade/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jan 2025 02:00:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/01/25051910/Pangolin_RAB-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=293440</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Conservation, Elephants, Endangered Species, Global Environmental Crisis, Governance, Illegal Trade, Ivory, Pangolins, Rhinos, Tigers, Traditional Medicine, Turtles And Tortoises, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[A new investigation by wildlife trade monitoring group TRAFFIC has uncovered an “alarming” slew of online adverts offering illegal wildlife products for sale in Vietnam, despite pledges from multiple platforms to clamp down on such content. The report, based on monitoring of social media groups and e-commerce platforms in Vietnam between June 2021 and July [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[A new investigation by wildlife trade monitoring group TRAFFIC has uncovered an “alarming” slew of online adverts offering illegal wildlife products for sale in Vietnam, despite pledges from multiple platforms to clamp down on such content. The report, based on monitoring of social media groups and e-commerce platforms in Vietnam between June 2021 and July 2023, focuses on items made from body parts of elephants, rhinos, pangolins, tigers, tortoises and freshwater turtles. Researchers identified 22,497 online posts by sellers based in Vietnam that overtly advertised products related to these species, with elephant ivory and tiger products each accounting for more than one-third of the total adverts. The authors note the actual number of items will be much higher, since the opacity of online groups curtailed the team’s ability to monitor the full range of adverts. The brazen availability of products from threatened and protected species confirms the “continued alarming popularity” for such products in Vietnam, according to the report. “The consistent prevalence of wildlife trade online could suggest a persistent demand, requiring considerable effort to alter social values and discourage illegal wildlife-based purchases,” the report says. More than 8,000 tigers are kept in captivity in China, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, where they are farmed to supply the demand for their body parts in traditional medicines. Image by liux2x via Pixabay. Most of the listings were aimed at buyers looking for animal-based traditional medicines, exotic pets, wild meat, and jewelry and other decorative curios. The researchers also uncovered an emerging trend&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/vietnam-grapples-with-alarming-popularity-of-online-illegal-wildlife-trade/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-293440</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Scientists unveil potential new pangolin species, highlighting conservation challenges</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/scientists-unveil-potential-new-pangolin-species-highlighting-conservation-challenges/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/scientists-unveil-potential-new-pangolin-species-highlighting-conservation-challenges/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>27 Jan 2025 00:54:32 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/01/24151715/output-onlinepngtools-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=293419</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia and China]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Illegal Trade, Pangolins, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Around 3.4 million years ago, a hidden evolutionary tale unfolded in the Indo-Burma region: a cryptic pangolin species diverged from the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla).  Long thought to be the same species, Indian scientists now propose it as distinct, though some experts remain skeptical. In a recent study published in Mammalian Biology, scientists from the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Around 3.4 million years ago, a hidden evolutionary tale unfolded in the Indo-Burma region: a cryptic pangolin species diverged from the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla).  Long thought to be the same species, Indian scientists now propose it as distinct, though some experts remain skeptical. In a recent study published in Mammalian Biology, scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) scientists described the Indo-Burmese pangolin as a new species, Manis indoburmanica, after mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis of pangolin seizures from the westernmost range of the Chinese pangolin showed a considerable genetic distinction. “Genomic analyses reveal that it diverged from the Chinese pangolin around 3.4 million years ago, indicating a long independent evolutionary history,” study co-author Mukesh Thakur, a senior scientist at the ZSI, told Mongabay by email. There was enough genetic difference uncovered in the analysis between Manis indoburmanica and Manis pentadactyla to suggest species-level differentiation, he added.  If the Indo-Burmese pangolin is officially accepted by the science and conservation communities, it would bring the total number of known pangolin species to nine. This includes four other Asian species — Chinese, Indian (M. crassicaudata), Sunda (M. javanica) and Philippine (M. culionensis) — and four African: black-bellied (Phataginus tetradactyla), white-bellied (Phataginus tricuspis), Temminck’s (Smutsia temminckii) and the giant ground pangolin (Smutsia gigantea). Historical misidentifications? Thakur said the late identification of M. indoburmanica is primarily due to limited genetic studies. “Historically, pangolin taxonomy has relied heavily on morphology” — physical characteristics — “which can be misleading due to similar physical traits among&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/scientists-unveil-potential-new-pangolin-species-highlighting-conservation-challenges/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-293419</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>China’s new pangolin quota for TCM sparks conservation concerns</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/chinas-new-pangolin-quota-for-tcm-sparks-conservation-concerns/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/chinas-new-pangolin-quota-for-tcm-sparks-conservation-concerns/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>24 Jan 2025 13:14:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/12/12102038/Philippine-pangolins-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=293396</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[China]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Trade, Pangolins, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[As one of the world’s largest consumers of pangolin products, primarily in traditional medicine, China’s domestic market plays a critical role in the survival of these gentle creatures. However, questions persist about the legality and status of the country’s stockpile of pangolin parts, especially with the recent announcement of a new annual quota of 1 [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[As one of the world’s largest consumers of pangolin products, primarily in traditional medicine, China’s domestic market plays a critical role in the survival of these gentle creatures. However, questions persist about the legality and status of the country’s stockpile of pangolin parts, especially with the recent announcement of a new annual quota of 1 metric ton of pangolin scales for medicinal use — something conservationists warn could perpetuate illegal trafficking. Earlier this month, China submitted a document to CITES, the global wildlife trade convention, outlining its conservation measures, including using 1 metric ton of pangolin scales annually, equivalent to about 2,000 pangolins. It described this as a &#8220;reasonable reduction of consumption.&#8221;   The submission comes ahead of the 78th meeting of CITES’s standing committee (SC78) in Geneva in February. China first announced this policy in a November 2024 notice directing relevant government agencies to comply. This move contrasts with the international ban on the pangolin scale trade, and continues a recent trend in which China has presented an unclear stance on pangolin conservation. While the country elevated its three native pangolin species to the highest level of national protection, and in 2020 removed pangolin scales from the official list of “raw ingredients” for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), pangolins are still listed as an ingredient in patent medicine formulas in the official TCM reference book. Some experts say the new quota represents some progress, as it’s a smaller and more restricted amount than the 25-metric-ton annual quota prescribed from 2008 to&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/01/chinas-new-pangolin-quota-for-tcm-sparks-conservation-concerns/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-293396</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>A universal tagging system for pangolins, world’s most trafficked mammal</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/12/a-universal-tagging-system-for-pangolins-worlds-most-trafficked-mammal/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/12/a-universal-tagging-system-for-pangolins-worlds-most-trafficked-mammal/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>23 Dec 2024 04:18:52 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Keith Anthony Fabro]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/12/23020139/Ground-pangolin_KeithConnelly-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=292168</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Crime, Pangolins, Poaching, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Wildlife Trafficking]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Pangolins have the dubious distinction of being the most trafficked mammals in the world. Yet as often as they wind up in wildlife seizures, authorities and conservationists have no universal way to track and identify individual pangolins. But researchers are working to change this. In a recently published study, they proposed what they call the [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Pangolins have the dubious distinction of being the most trafficked mammals in the world. Yet as often as they wind up in wildlife seizures, authorities and conservationists have no universal way to track and identify individual pangolins. But researchers are working to change this. In a recently published study, they proposed what they call the Pangolin Universal Notching System (PUNS), a standardized way to assign unique identification numbers to up to 15,554 individuals.  PUNS combines existing marking techniques used for turtles and hoofed mammals. This minimally invasive method involves gently drilling holes in a selected number of a pangolin&#8217;s scales along the back for permanent identification. The Pangolin Universal Notching System used on a Temminck&#8217;s pangolin works by marking scales along its back. In the left illustration, the pangolin is shown from above, with its head at the top. The scale closest to the shoulder on the left side is marked &#8220;1,&#8221; and the one on the right is marked &#8220;100.&#8221; The scale between these two marks shows if the pangolin is male or female: if it&#8217;s the first scale, it&#8217;s a male, and if it&#8217;s the fifth scale, it&#8217;s a female. In the right illustration, to identify the number 7238, the 7000, 200, 20, 10, 7, and 1 scales as well as the first scale in the midline indicating male are marked. Image courtesy of Martin et al. (2024). “Stress during notching is negligible, and the marks themselves don&#8217;t jeopardize the pangolins&#8217; health in any way, nor make them&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/12/a-universal-tagging-system-for-pangolins-worlds-most-trafficked-mammal/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-292168</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>On foot and by drone, radio tracking helps rehabilitate pangolins in Vietnam</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/05/on-foot-and-by-drone-radio-tracking-helps-rehabilitate-pangolins-in-vietnam/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2024/05/on-foot-and-by-drone-radio-tracking-helps-rehabilitate-pangolins-in-vietnam/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>10 May 2024 14:34:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Claudia Geib]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Jeremy Hance]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/05/10130532/Tran-Van-Truong-pangolin-vietnam-2-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=281944</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Illegal Wildlife Trade]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Conservation, Conservation Technology, Critically Endangered Species, Drones, Endangered Species, Happy-upbeat Environmental, Illegal Trade, Mammals, Pangolins, Rehabilitation, Technology, Wildlife, Wildlife Rehabilitation, Wildlife Trade, Wildlife Trafficking, Wildtech, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When the organization Save Vietnam’s Wildlife receives a pangolin rescued from the wildlife trade, it can take months to remind the scaly, housecat-sized mammal how to be a pangolin again. After treating any diseases or injuries, SVW caretakers place the pangolin in a small, semiwild enclosure. Here they monitor the rehabilitating animals to see if [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When the organization Save Vietnam’s Wildlife receives a pangolin rescued from the wildlife trade, it can take months to remind the scaly, housecat-sized mammal how to be a pangolin again. After treating any diseases or injuries, SVW caretakers place the pangolin in a small, semiwild enclosure. Here they monitor the rehabilitating animals to see if they’re behaving the way they would in the wild: if they’re investigating tubes of bamboo filled with ants, if they’re climbing trees, and if they’re digging burrows in the soft dirt. It can take up to a year for rescued animals to start acting like wild pangolins again — a delay compounded by ongoing criminal investigations, in which the animals are evidence. But once a pangolin has been approved for release, SVW’s veterinarians might take an additional step: puncturing a hole in one of the pangolin’s fingernail-like scales and fastening on a small radio transmitter. Then they reintroduce the pangolin back to Vietnam’s forests and marshes, hoping that each animal has remembered enough to survive. For the pangolin, radio tracking offers a tremendous boon to research. These mammals are shy and nocturnal. Because they live in dense forest and burrow underground, much of their habits are still unknown. For SVW, radio tracking pangolins on foot and using a new radio telemetry-equipped drone is revealing previously unknown facets of the animals&#8217; lives, as well as refining the reintroduction process. But like many conservation organizations, their work is also limited by funding challenges. A rehabilitated pangolin being&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2024/05/on-foot-and-by-drone-radio-tracking-helps-rehabilitate-pangolins-in-vietnam/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
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					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-281944</doi>				</item>
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