Twice as many plants and animals sold in wildlife trade as previously thought, says report

Parrots found inside drainage pipes in a raid in Labuha, North Maluku, Indonesia. The trade in wildlife has been ‘completely underestimated’, the report says. Photograph: AFP/ View image in fullscreen Parrots found inside drainage pipes in a raid in Labuha, North Maluku, Indonesia. The trade in wildlife has been ‘completely underestimated’, the report says. Photograph: AFP/ Twice as many plants and animals sold in wildlife trade as previously thought, says report More than 100,000 species are traded globally, whether illegally smuggled, sold as ornaments or in fisheries, timber and fashion industries, study finds The number of plant and animal species in use or sold in the wildlife trade is more than twice as high as previously thought, researchers have discovered. A study, published in Science Advances, warns that there are huge gaps in global assessments of how wildlife is traded, and that past estimates have failed to keep up with changes such as the boom in the online exotic pet trade, where sellers offering to post spider eggs across the world or sneak reptiles on to planes are just a click away. “The dimensions of trade have changed. Without monitoring it in a representative way, we cannot manage it,” said Alice Hughes, a professor at the University of Melbourne and lead author of the study. “At the moment, we are completely underestimating what modern trade looks like – for the pet trade and for the ornamental trade, we are not capturing it. And it poses a major risk to species.” The study comes as the US-based nonprofit, the Center for Biological Diversity, filed a petition asking the US Fish and Wildlife Service to list the Javan slit-faced bat under the Endangered Species Act, warning that consumers are buying the bat for decor, placing it at risk of extinction. Taxidermy bats are sought after, particularly , who are looking for gothic or spooky decorations for Halloween or Christmas gifts, the centre said. The wildlife trade study identified 107,356 species that are either in use or traded globally – far higher than a previous estimate of about 50,000, which was made -Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). The study draws on more comprehensive datasets, as well as newer research papers that have tracked species sold online for decoration. It shows flaws in our understanding of what species are at risk; for example, the number of butterfly species found to be traded is greater than the IPBES’ entire estimate for all traded terrestrial invertebrates.