Demand for wild pets driving surge in wildlife crime across Hispanic America

December 5, 2024 – A new report has revealed incidents of poaching and trafficking across 18 Hispanic American countries are on the rise, highlighting a significant threat to the region’s biodiversity.   

The report - Wildlife Crime in Hispanic America: An analysis of seizures and poaching incidents (2017-2022) -, documents 1,945 seizures and poaching incidents reported in the media during this period, involving more than 100,000 animals. From the beginning to the end of the study period, a marked increase can be seen, from 257 cases in 2017 rising to 431 cases in 2022.  

It was commissioned by IFAW and analysed trends in illegal wildlife trafficking in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.  

Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, and Bolivia reported the highest rates of wildlife crime, with Mexico alone accounting for 27.9% of all incidents and 45% of the total animals seized or poached.  

The seizures and poaching incidents involved at least 690 different species such as freshwater turtles, caimans, poison dart frogs, parakeets, macaws, jaguars, pumas, howler and spider monkeys. Despite the trade of wildlife derivatives being a major concern, researchers were surprised that 92.5% of seizures involved live animals, destined primarily for the pet trade which has gained popularity – noticeably via social media. Reptiles were the most commonly recorded with 59% of incidents, followed by 27.5% for birds; 9.5% for amphibians; and 4% for mammals respectively.  

Wildlife crime presents a lucrative, low-risk, high-reward crime in Hispanic America, with law enforcement efforts being limited to mainly reactive rather than proactive interventions.  

The report also found that while the majority of the trade was opportunistic, the European traffickers appeared to be targeting non-CITES species, as weak penalties in the EU for smuggling such animals were a likely driver. Cross-border smuggling was also identified in the region, whereby traffickers are taking advantage of weaker laws in neighbouring countries.  

Sources also identified that organised crime groups in the region primarily involved in drugs, human trafficking and firearms have branched out into the illicit wildlife trade to diversify their income. For example, Mexican criminal gangs are allegedly selling wildlife products to Chinese traders in exchange for fentanyl and methamphetamine, which the criminal groups send overseas. There have also been instances noted where criminals have purchased expensive, exotic wild animals with illicit cash and have sold them on to launder money.  

“This study paints an alarming picture for wildlife in the region. Although 1,945 incidents were recorded, these were the incidents that were both foiled and that the media reported on, so this only represents the tip of the iceberg. It’s clear that the illegal exploitation of these wild animals is rife, and there is an urgent need for coordinated action to safeguard the region's rich biodiversity,” says Polen Cisneros, IFAW’s Wildlife Crime Program Manager.    

While most of the trafficked wildlife remains within domestic and regional markets, 2.6% of seizures were clearly destined for the US, Europe, and Asia. These shipments frequently included rare and endemic species, posing significant threats to vulnerable wildlife. Many species found in illegal trade are listed as Endangered or Critically Endangered by IUCN, meaning they face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. However, it is rare for articles to detail the entire source, transit, and destination chain, suggesting that the true volume of wildlife trafficked abroad may be higher than reported, as critical links in the trafficking network are often not reported.   

“The apparent uptick in wildlife crime in the region is a big worry, suggesting a probable escalation in poaching and trafficking. Not only does this mean immense animal suffering coupled with high mortality rates. It also risks overspill of zoonotic disease transmission, which could have devastating consequences that spread far and wide, as we have seen in recent years with COVID-19, SARS, MERS, Zika and Ebola”, Cisneros added.  

“The findings underscore the importance of addressing both domestic and international drivers of wildlife crime, offering critical opportunities for more effective law enforcement and comprehensive conservation efforts,” said Cisneros.    

The report is accompanied by a first of its kind, interactive, online dashboard in which users will be able to interact with all the data that was compiled through this research. 

Among its recommendations, IFAW calls for intensified actions to combat wildlife poaching and trafficking, in line with the Lima Declaration on Illegal Wildlife Trade. This includes recognizing wildlife poaching and trafficking as serious crimes and addressing online wildlife crime with effective sanctions and penalties.  

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Notes to editors: 

• Full Report: Wildlife Crime in Hispanic America (2017-2022) 
• Executive Summary is available in English and Spanish 
• Online analysis dashboard along with its User guidelines

Media contact: 

Stacey Hedman, Senior Director of Communications 
shedman@ifaw.org 
+1 508 737 2558