Advances in game hunting, wildlife trade and hunting sustainability

Abstract

Over hunting and over trade in wildlife and its products are big challenges to biodiversity conservation throughout the world. Globally, the trade in tiger bone and rhinoceros horn, illegal trade in live wildlife in Southeast Asia, trade in wildlife products in Russian Far East and across Sino Russia border, tropical bush meat hunting and trade, and illegal trade in wildlife products in Himalayan region, are increasingly threatening wildlife resources in the world. Advocating hunting sustainability is one of the approaches to resolving the problems of over hunting and over trade. In models for hunting sustainability, “the model of game refugia” and “the spatial control approach” which suggest to set aside reserves in hunted areas, will have good prospects in conservation practice. The future directions in conservation related to game hunting and wildlife trade include: to understand poaching dynamics and characteristic and its effects on populations of endangered animals, to harmonize relationship between traditional medicine and wildlife conservation, to control illegal hunting and illegal trade in wildlife and its products across border between countries and to apply hunting sustainability models in conservation practice. The over hunting and over trade in wildlife and its products have seriously threatened China′s biodiversity and its sustainable use, but little information related is available. It is needed for establishing the working agency for monitoring wildlife hunting and wildlife trade, and improving legislation and its enforcement for conservation related and management of nature reserves, and strengthening research on wildlife hunting and wildlife trade in China.