From the glacial fjords of Chilean Patagonia to the beaches and mountains of Baja California, Hispanic America, representing Spanish-speaking countries in South and Central America and the Caribbean, is a biodiversity treasure trove. These include colorful macaws, showy iguanas, gaudy poison frogs and charismatic cats — animals so beautiful that people want to own them as pets. A recent report throws light on what this desire for exotic pets means for biodiversity in Hispanic America, where wildlife numbers are already nosediving due to large-scale deforestation and planned infrastructure projects. The report, published by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), examines seizure and poaching incidents in Hispanic America over a six-year period and provides the first region-wide analysis of illegal wildlife trafficking, a key contributor to biodiversity loss. Most of the trafficked animals supplied the global demand for wild pets. With detailed analyses of wildlife crimes in 18 countries, the report gives a “whole picture” of the region,” says Polen Cisneros, project manager for the wildlife crime program at IFAW. “My idea was to have the first report that had all the baseline information, which people can easily access online and read about it, so we are more informed of what’s actually happening in the region.” Green iguanas (Iguana iguana), trafficked for the exotic pet trade, are the most seized lizards in Hispanic America. In countries like Thailand, they have become an invasive species. Image credits: Aatu Dorochenko – CC BY-SA 4.0. Cisneros and her team scoured through media reports,…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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