In this Issue:
Our topic: Wildlife Trafficking and Rehabilitation
Happy World Wildlife Day from Prime Earth!
Wildlife Trafficking: Harms and Causes
Global Regulations and Law Enforcement
Ways We’re Joining the Fight to Save Gibbons
Welcome back to What We Know! After some time off, our newsletters are back and better than ever.
In this inaugural edition of the rebooted What We Know series, we’re diving into the harms and causes of wildlife trafficking, then exploring the actions we can all take to curb this crisis.
Let's get to it!
(A Belated) Happy World Wildlife Day from Prime Earth!
Held each year on March 3rd, World Wildlife Day is a day of international celebration that highlights the importance of the world’s wild plants and animals.
This year’s celebration marks an extra special milestone as it commemorates the 50th anniversary of CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, and this year’s theme is: “Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation.”
How exactly can partnership help us to conserve wildlife and protect them from illegal trade?
Read on to find out.
Wildlife Trafficking: Causes, Harms, and Solutions
Before we can begin to address the crisis that is the illegal wildlife trade, we need to
understand what causes it in the first place. The main drivers of wildlife trafficking and illegal pet trade are (predictably) the high profit margins that are reaped from the sale of rare species.
Many people around the world are willing to pay huge sums of money for special animal parts like rhino horns and elephant ivory. The body parts of animals are often used as status symbols and sometimes used in forms of alternative or traditional medicine- but both frequently involve unethical (and often illegal) removal of wildlife from their natural habitats and exploitation of their bodies.
In addition to buying body parts, there are also people willing to pay huge sums of money for live animals, with the intent to keep them as pets or use them in animal attraction tourism/facilities. The incentive for risking it all to collect animals and their body parts for wildlife traffickers is compounded by weak enforcement of laws in many countries - the high price rare species like gibbons fetch makes this seem like too lucrative a deal to pass up. And while individual poachers may be caught and punished appropriately, larger trade networks often continue with minimal or no consequences as a result of the crimes committed within them.
The reality of wildlife trafficking is clearly dismal, and unfortunately, thousands of gibbons are imprisoned or killed in this illegal industry every year. Gibbons are most commonly hunted and trapped for pet trade, but they are also occasionally hunted for bushmeat and their body parts traded on the black market.
It’s a tragic fate, so how can we turn things around?
The best ways for YOU to take action now:
ADVOCATE: As advocates for animal rights, we have far more power when we come together in service of our goals than when we operate on our own. This can mean taking part in larger awareness campaigns on social media, donating to organizations doing work in your wildlife interest areas, or even educating friends and family on problematic statements about using wildlife as pets or products.
REPORT CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Another powerful tool you have to combat wildlife trafficking is reporting related content that you may see on social media. Much of the advertising for the pet trade occurs on social media, and the more posts we report and get taken down, the fewer people see this content and attempt to purchase wildlife as a result.
Become an Online Gibbon Guardian: Stay tuned for an upcoming guide from us at Prime Earth on how to report the sale of wildlife and their mistreatment on various social media platforms.
Follow Us: Prime Earth also provides resources on common misconceptions around the treatment of primates via our Instagram series “Cruel Not Cute” - if you’re ever unsure about whether or not a post warrants a report, we encourage you to check out these guidelines to evaluate it.
Global Regulation & Law Enforcement: who regulates wildlife trade to protect endangered species?
The primary way we attempt to curb wildlife trafficking is through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
CITES is an international agreement between governments around the world that seeks to ensure international trade of wild animals and plants do not threaten species survival.
Initiated in 1975, CITES now compromises 184 member parties (governments from various countries around the world), and regulates the trade of more than 38,000 species (approximately 25,000+ plant species and 5,000+ animal species)!
CITES divide species into three levels (Appendix I, Appendix II, and Appendix III), and each category provides a different level of protective regulations:
Each member party is required to designate one or more Management Authorities in their respective country's government to be in charge of administering a trade licensing system along with one or more Scientific Authorities to advise on the effects of trade concerning the status of the species.
Using a set of biological and trade criteria, CITES hold regular meetings allowing their member parties to submit proposals to vote on adding species to include in Appendix I or Appendix II. But, Appendix III contains species that are protected in at least one country, and countries can seek assistance from CITES for regulating trade of these species without requiring a vote.
What's important to understand with CITES, however, is that CITES do not address animal welfare. They ONLY provided regulations concerning licensing and permitting trade of plants and animals, and each individual country.
This is why more extensive wildlife protection laws are required at individual state, provincial, and federal levels in every country's government around the world. And, just as each individual government system must enact laws to outline allowable actions - they must also strictly enforce those rules within their countries to ensure success.
This can be where things break down.
That’s why some of the most important actors in combating the illegal trade of wildlife, like gibbons, are the sanctuaries and rehabilitation centres that work to rescue and protect wild animals from a dismissal life in wildlife trafficking. These special organizations have concrete impacts on the lives of individual animals and are vital to the continued protection of wildlife.
Read on to find out more about the role of sanctuaries and rehabilitation centres in the fight against wildlife trafficking.
Rehabilitation and Sanctuaries: ways we’re joining the fight to save gibbons
Sanctuaries and rehabilitation centres serve many purposes in our fight to end illegal pet trade and support animals in recovery. Supporting sanctuaries is crucial to the survival of gibbons, because gibbon rehabilitation takes a long and, at times, can be a challenging process.
Gibbons require at least 8-10 years in a rehabilitation centre to heal from the trauma experienced in wildlife trafficking, and this timeframe can easily get longer when individuals are victims of particularly severe abuse in captivity.
During rehabilitation, gibbons must learn how to be “wild” after years way from the forest and mistreatment by humans. To survive in their natural habitats, gibbons must be able to brachiate (their characteristic swinging movement style), show a preference for wild foods, detect threats like predators, and be able to maintain positive pair associations and social relationships with other gibbons.
This last point is integral to the process, as gibbons have long life histories, meaning they take a long time to grow up and reproduce. Having successful pairs, that eventually have babies of their own, is crucial to both the wellbeing of individual gibbons as well as the survival of gibbon species in the wild.
But to get to this stage, many gibbons in rehabilitation facilities have to undergo behavioural therapy to elimination problematic behaviours (e.g.: pacing, over-grooming, excessive licking, and other self-injurious behaviours) that they develop as coping mechanisms while being subjected to poor living conditions, malnutrition, and abuse in illegal pet trade.
To ensure rehabilitation projects can continue their important work, they required a lot of support. That's why we partner with responsible gibbon rehabilitation facilities to support their excellent work caring for gibbons in need.
By helping rehabilitation facilities rescue gibbons from unsafe and unhealthy captive situations, care for their health and well-being, and when possible, return them to the jungle to live happy, healthy normal lives, we help conserve and protect gibbons today and for the future.
Now You’re In the Know!
The wildlife trade is a multi-billion dollar illegal industry cause significant harm to wildlife, our planet, and the people involved in these crimes. But the power to change is within reach.
In order to stand up against a formidable foe, we must join together in the fight to protect animal rights and save individuals from the abusive wildlife trafficking industry that's driving species extinction. Mad? Sad? Frustrated? Use this energy for good by reporting animal abuse and trafficking content on social media when you see it. Brave those awkward conversations and call out anti-animal views in circle of influence.
Support organizations doing working hard to stop the demand, Become a Gibbon Guardian, and help spread the word! When we all stand together, we’re much harder to knock down.
Until next time . . .
