The future of wild animals threatened by illegal trade

Environment · Lorenzo Brenna · 2016-10-06

The Cites summit held in Johannesburg has come to a close, convened to take stock of the challenges facing wildlife around the world. Here's how it went.

Greater protection for some endangered species, such as pangolins and Barbary macaques, and a ban on the sale of ivory and rosewood. These are among the decisions taken at the seventeenth Conference of the Parties (CoP17) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), held in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 24 September to 5 October.

Liberazione di un rinoceronte in Sudafrica — Release of a rhinoceros in Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa (Photo credit should read GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/Getty Images)

The aim of Cites

Cites, also known as the Washington Convention, is an international agreement between governments, which entered into force in 1975, that regulates the international trade in wild fauna and flora species threatened with extinction.

CoP17

Delegates from 158 countries attended the Cites summit, gathered to assess the (precarious) state of global biodiversity and develop new and more effective strategies to eradicate the illegal trade in protected species — a phenomenon that risks seriously causing the extinction of numerous animal and plant species. During the Johannesburg summit, described by Cites Secretary-General John E. Scanlon as "one of the most decisive events in the forty-three-year history of the Convention", numerous issues were addressed and considerable progress was made in the fight against poaching and the buying and selling of animals.

Elephants and ivory

There is good news for elephants, but only partially. The ban on the legal trade in ivory on a global scale was confirmed; however, the proposal to list African elephants in Appendix I of Cites — the highest level of protection under international law — did not pass. The greater protection for the pachyderms, requested by the African Elephant Coalition (Aec), would have dealt a severe blow to ivory traders, but 44 delegates voted against (compared to 66 in favour). Those opposed argued that most African elephant populations listed in Appendix II are not sufficiently threatened to warrant inclusion in Appendix I. The European Union, through the votes of its 28 member states, played a decisive role by siding against the up-listing of elephants. The EU's stance provoked anger among numerous conservationists, who experienced the decision as a betrayal, including Rosalind Reeve of the Fondation Franz Weber and the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation. "If the EU had supported the African Elephant Coalition proposal, the Appendix I listing would have passed. The blood of African elephants is on Europe's hands."

Elefante africano — Delegates from the 158 countries present at the summit did not approve, with the required two-thirds majority, the proposal to list all African elephants in Appendix I (Photo credit should read GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/Getty Images)

Pangolins, Barbary macaques, West Caucasian turs and rosewoods protected

It was unanimously decided to ban the international trade in three endangered animal species: the pangolin (all eight species), the Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) and the West Caucasian tur (Capra caucasica). These animals have been listed in Appendix I of Cites, which prohibits any cross-border movement of animals or parts of their bodies for commercial purposes. Restrictions on the trade in more than 300 rosewood species were also introduced, as these trees are threatened by high international demand for their timber.

The survival of elephants is severely threatened by ivory trafficking. Between 2010 and 2012, more than 100,000 elephants were killed for their tusks (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

The Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) is the only monkey native to the European continent. These animals live not only in Morocco and Algeria, but also in Gibraltar. Many young are captured and sold as pets, and population numbers have halved over the past thirty years (Photo by: Education Images/UIG via Getty Images)

The trade in amphibians and reptiles can pose a serious threat to wild populations, particularly when collection is excessive, species are rare and habitats are already compromised (Photo By DEA / C. DANI I. JESKE/De Agostini/Getty Images)

The West Caucasian tur (Capra caucasica) is a mountain wild goat that closely resembles the Alpine ibex. These goats, native to the western regions of the Caucasus, are the victims of relentless hunting for their magnificent horns, which are prized as trophies in Russia and Georgia Photo by Schellhorn/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

The wood of various rosewood species, such as Brazilian rosewood, is particularly sought after for its high quality and is used in the manufacture of furniture and musical instruments (Photo by John S Lander/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Until ten thousand years ago, the lion was found across almost the entire planet and was the second most widespread large mammal after humans; today, according to a Plos-One study, only around 35,000 lions survive in the wild, occupying approximately a quarter of the area historically inhabited by the species (Photo credit should read Andy Rouse / Barcroft Media / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

Almost a third of existing cactus species is at risk of extinction; these succulents are severely threatened by illegal trade. The illegal sale of plants and seeds to supply the gardening industry affects 47 per cent of at-risk plants (Photo by Wild Horizons/UIG via Getty Images)

The silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) is strongly pelagic in its habits, only occasionally observed swimming in coastal waters. Silky sharks are in decline worldwide, threatened by commercial fishing © Reinhard Dirscherl/ullstein bild via Getty Images

Rays and sharks

Among the topics debated was the traceability of animals sold, with the aim of tracing the origin of the trade in threatened species. Among those particularly affected are numerous species of sharks and rays. Some of these, such as the silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis) and the common thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus), have been listed in Appendix II, which restricts their international trade.

Amphibians and reptiles

One of the threats facing these ancient animals is the growing demand from hobbyist breeders, whose numbers are on the rise. The international trade in exotic animals sought as pets puts the survival of fifty-six reptile species at risk. From now on, numerous amphibian and reptile species will benefit from greater protection.

Camaleonte Madagascar — Cites decided to improve the protection of more than 350 amphibian and reptile species threatened by international trade (Photo by Nick Garbutt/Barcroft Media / Getty Images)

African lions

For lions, as for elephants, the proposal to list these big cats in Appendix I of Cites — which would have imposed a complete ban on their trade — was unsuccessful. A kind of compromise was reached, establishing that the buying and selling of bones, teeth and claws from wild lions is prohibited, but not those from lions bred in captivity; the export of hunting trophies also remains legal.