Abstract
AbstractExotic pet supply is a key, predominantly legal, component of global wildlife trade, but few studies have quantified its diversity or global reach. Here, using information extracted from the public (open) Facebook accounts of two wildlife exporters in Togo, West Africa, we identified at least 200 species, predominantly reptiles, but also mammals, birds, amphibians and invertebrates, advertised as available for sale and export, between the years 2016 and 2020. Of the animals identified, several hundred, possibly several thousand, individuals were shipped, at least monthly, to North America, Europe, Asia, and elsewhere in Africa, via a number of major airlines. Among the vertebrates observed, approximately one‐third had not yet been evaluated on the IUCN Red list, and three quarters were not CITES‐listed (i.e., their trade was not regulated under this international treaty). The apparent lack of adequate monitoring of population status, disease, biological invasion, and animal welfare risks associated with this trade, as well as neglected taxa (e.g., invertebrates), has potential implications for environmental, public, and animal health. The findings of this case study suggest that a systematic review of social media activity could efficiently reveal significant insights into the otherwise undocumented global supply of exotic pets, directing legislators to aspects and areas where regulation is insufficient, and informing international and national policy change.
Highlights
Many more species collected for the pet trade are not listed on CITES appendices—for these species, some aspects of their trade may be regulated but there is no international monitoring or regulation of the species and numbers involved
There are public health issues associated with the role of national and international animal movements in the spread and release of zoonotic disease (e.g., Borsky, Hennighausen, Leiter, & Williges, 2020; Brown, 2008; Can et al, 2019; Karesh, Cook, Bennett, & Newcomb, 2005; Kuiken et al, 2005; Smith et al, 2017; Travis, Watson, & Tauer, 2011; Warwick, Arena, Steedman, & Jessop, 2012), and animal welfare issues and mortalities associated with capture, confinement, and local, national, and international transport (e.g., Steinmetz, Pütsch, & Bisschopinck, 1998; reviewed in Baker et al, 2013)
Despite the potential risks associated with the legal international trade and transport of live wild animal species, the practice has received relatively little attention in the scientific literature compared with the illegal wildlife trade more generally (Vinke & Vinke, 2012; Milner-Gulland, 2018 and references therein; see 't Sas-Rolfes, Challender, Hinsley, Veríssimo, & Milner-Gulland, 2019)
Summary
Large quantities of live wild animals, many sourced directly from the wild (e.g., Auliya, 2003; Harrington, 2015; Krishnasamy & Zavagli, 2020; Sinovas, Price, King, Hinsley, & Pavitt, 2017), are transported around the world to supply the international exotic pet market, an industry considered to be a key component of the global wildlife trade. Despite the potential risks associated with the legal international trade and transport of live wild animal species, the practice has received relatively little attention in the scientific literature compared with the illegal wildlife trade more generally (Vinke & Vinke, 2012; Milner-Gulland, 2018 and references therein; see 't Sas-Rolfes, Challender, Hinsley, Veríssimo, & Milner-Gulland, 2019) As such few studies (but see Bush, Baker, & Macdonald, 2014) have attempted to quantify the full extent and nature of the trade in live wild animals, in terms of taxonomic diversity or global reach—both of which are needed to enable appropriate management, and prediction and avoidance of various risk factors (e.g., Scheffers, Oliveira, Lamb, & Edwards, 2019). We discuss briefly the broader nature of the supply of live animals for the international exotic pet market (considering conservation, and animal welfare, and public health) and highlight where information and/or regulation appears to be lacking, with a view to informing future research, policy and planning
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