Information and analysis bulletin on animal poaching and smuggling n°7 / 1st October - 31st December 2014 Contents Introduction Sea Cucumbers and Seahorses 3 Corals 3 In the nuclear industry, the cliff edge effect Fishes 4 corresponds to the critical and hopeless phase Marine Mammals 6 where operators and authorities realize that Various Marine Species 7 all is going wrong and full loss of control is Marine Turtles 9 imminent, despite that indicators to that point Tortoises and Freshwater Turtles 13 had been overall reassuring and led them to Snakes 16 believe that a crisis situation was on the verge Sauria 17 to be managed. Crocodilians 18 Various Reptile Species 18 The cliff edge effect is applicable to the worldwide crisis that faces land and sea Arachnids 19 biodiversity. For far too long, it was believed that international treaties of which the Convention Birds 20 on International Trade in Endangered Species of Falcons and Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the Convention Houbara Bustards 29 on Biological Diversity (CBD) are at the forefront Pangolins 32 would be able to protect non-human animal species. Yet, all the dials are red. Primates 36 Sea cucumbers, pangolins, African and Asian Celebrities are boring 44 monkeys, elephants, vultures – they are all sa- crificed at the altar for the unquenchable space Felines 45 and comfort want of mankind. Leopards and Men 48 South Africa is a victim of the cliff edge effect. Zoomania 57 Rhinos are spiraling down in a panic stage for the profit of speculators and fools around the Bears 58 world. Rhinoceroses 62 194 countries and governments, 7.3 billion men Elephants 76 and women are unable of joining hands to stop France is listening to the elephants 95 20,000 rhinos from meeting their doom. Other Mammals 96 At the end of their rope, South Africa is fidgeting Nobel Prize helps to better know the panda 98 and once again it’s the rhinos that get the short end of the stick. They are anesthetized, tossed Multi-Species 102 around from Natural Park to private reserve, auctioned off, preventively mutilated and ha- Portrait of Malayan colugo 111 rassed. The fewer there are, the more they are The ex-Hawai’i Mamo 118 mistreated and poached. Sources 120 1 On The Trail # 7. Robin des Bois Carried out by Robin des Bois with the encouragement and financial support of the Fondation Brigitte Bardot, the Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux and the Fondation Franz Weber reconnue d’utilité publique 28, rue Vineuse - 75116 Paris Tél : 01 45 05 14 60 www.fondationbrigittebardot.fr CITES* Appendices Appendix I : species threatened with extinction. Trade in specimens of these species is permitted only in exceptional circumstances and under import and export permits. Appendix II : export permit required in order to avoid utilization incompatible with the species survi- val. Import permit if required by national law. Appendix III : species that are protected in at least one country, which has asked other CITES Parties for assistance in controlling the trade. In the case of trade from a State that included the species in Appendix III, an export permit of that State is required. * Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. 180 Member States. On The Trail # 7. Robin des Bois 2 Sea Cucumbers and ASIA Seahorses Seizure of 70 kg of sea cucumbers (Class Holo- thuroidea - Isostichopus fuscus, Appendix III in Ecuador) 4 AMERICA Mandapam, State of Tamil Nadu, India October 27, 2014 Seizure of 3404 sea cucumbers (164.16 kg) It is forbidden to fish these animals in Indian waters. (Class Holothuroidea - Isostichopus fuscus, Ap- 1 In July 2014, 600 kg of sea cucumbers had already pendix III in Ecuador) been seized in the city of Mandapam (see “On the Tijuana, State of Baja California, Mexico Trail” n°6 p.5). November 2014 In 4 packages and 33 plastic bags. Sea cucumbers are key links in marine life. Despite their vast range, they are threatened with extinc- tion in the short term. Humans rake them to take care of their skin, for their rheumatisms and to eat them (see “On the Trail” n°4, p.107). Seizure of 704 dried seahorses (1.8 kg) (Hippo- campus spp., Appendix II) 5 Nanning, Zhuang autonomous region of Guangxi, China December 2014 Corals © Profepa AFRICA Arrest of 6 divers suspected of coral poaching1 2 nautical miles off the Lahnaya beach, Wilaya El Taref, Algeria Octobre 7, 2014 © WoRMS for SMEBD for WoRMS Seizure of 58,115 sea cucumbers (783 kg) (Class Holothuroidea - Isostichopus fuscus, Appendix III in Ecuador) 2 Tijuana, State of Baja California, Mexico November 2014 The merchandise was bound for California (USA). Ir- regularities are detected on the export documents. Cladocora caespitosa 783 kg adding up to 32,000 sea cucumbers are de- 10 different species of coral are found in the Alge- clared. The customs officers count 58,115 of them. rian waters and listed in Appendix II of CITES. They belong to the Order of Scleractinia and are subject Seizure of 116 brown sea cucumbers (Class Ho- to increasing trafficking that is dangerous for div- lothuroidea - Isostichopus fuscus, Appendix III in ers. A week before this event the body of a diver Ecuador) and 654 mollusks of the Spondylus cal- 3 with his gear had been toed aboard an Annaba cifer species, not listed in CITES cost-guards’ vessel on patrol. State of Baja California, Mexico During the 3 first months of the year, 23 divers in- December 2014 cluding one Italian were arrested by maritime po- The Jeep Cherokee and its 4 passengers were chec- lice in the Annaba region. The illegal corals would ked at 15 km north of San Felipe (State of Baja Cali- be sold within the European Union. fornia). The 4 were arrested. 3 On The Trail # 7. Robin des Bois ASIA Poaching 8,2 tons of lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens, Appendix II), seizure of 278 kg of Conviction for illegal purchase and sale of lake sturgeon, caviar and arrest3 7028.38 g of coral 2 Bécancour, Province of Quebec, Canada Xiapu County, Fujian Province, China October 21, 2014 October 2014 Red branches earned 3 Chinese citizens arrested in 2013 to be sentenced to 8, 7 and 6 months in prison and 30,000 (US $ 4,876) and 20,000 yuans fines. Fishes AFRICA Seizure of 80 kg of shark fins and arrest of 2 Ni- gerians1 Port-Gentil, Province of Ogooué-Maritime, Gabon Hashime Murayama November 30, 2014 The sturgeons, at least 1250 of them, were cap- tured by 28 fishermen, each having their own out- let and sharing only the modus operandi. Every man for himself, sturgeons for all. This was the mot- to in force between Sainte-Angèle and Bécancour a good hundred km upstream from Quebec. 4 small boats, a snowmobile, registers, computers and only one fishing net were seized along with an undeter- mined quantity of caviar. An average sized sturgeon pro- duces 3 kg of smoked flesh sold 35 US$ per kg. Caviar is sold a minimum at 1600 Gabon News © € per kg. The professional and leisure fisherman had certainly found the fish that AMERICA lays golden eggs. Restaurant owners, professional fish smokers and Seizure of 2.5 tons of arapaima (Arapaima Gigas, the Director-general of wildlife protection in Que- Appendix II)2 bec, Réjean Rioux, explain that fish illegally caught Manaus Moderna Port, State of Amazonas, Brazil are sold legally on the market. Yet when the restau- October 20, 2014 rant owner, members of the public, the smoke On board the São Francisco de Assis. The 4 passen- room for fish, fishmongers buy or sell at such a price gers were arrested. They explained that their catch fish that everyone knows are threatened with ex- was to be divided among them. 400 kg for Pinheiro tinction and very vulnerable to pollution, they have (28 years old), 600 kg for Ismael da Rochas Santos (34 a duty to demand certificates or information that years old), 1500 kg for Leandro Gama (20 years old). prove the legal origin, if not they act as accomplic- The boat owner, Miguel Moreira Lopes (45 years old), es to an environmental crime. Investigations had says that for his part he only takes care of transpor- been underway for 2 years. According to Quebec tation. They apparently travelled for 4 days (744 km) internal security services, the total amount of fines from Japurá (State of the Amazonas) to Manaus to could reach 358,050 US$. sell the goods. They were released under bail. Seizure of 3 bags of shark fins4 Costa Rica November 19, 2014 In the San José Airport, 2 tons of shark fins were de- parting for Hong-Kong via UPS and China Airlines. According to the rules, they should have come from species considered common. Random opening of 3 bags by veterinarian services assisted by the NGO Pretoma (Program for the restoration of marine tur- tles) revealed the presence of fins from hammer- head sharks (Sphyrna lewini) and oceanic whitetip sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus), 2 species threat- ened by extinction listed under CITES Appendix II. This case has brought to light the weakness of © Portal do Purus On The Trail # 7. Robin des Bois 4 ASIA Poaching of big-eyed tuna (Thunnus obesus, not listed by CITES) 6 China October 2014 © Xvic © CAFS verifications. Normally in the workshop where the sharks are cut and transformed, a veterinarian is supposed to check there are no fins taken from en- China Tuna Industry Group wants to enter the Hong dangered species. Kong stock market to raise 100 to 200 million dol- Experts from Pretoma put their finger on it.