Latest news with #USEndangeredSpeciesAct
France 24
16 hours ago
- General
- France 24
US moves to protect all species of pangolin, world's most trafficked mammal
Found in the forests, woodlands, and savannas of Africa and Asia, pangolins are small, nocturnal creatures known for their distinctive appearance, slow and peaceful demeanor, and habit of curling into a ball when threatened. Often likened to a walking pinecone, they use long, sticky tongues to feast on ants and termites, give birth to a single pup each year -- and are the most heavily trafficked mammals on Earth. Their keratin scales are coveted in traditional medicine, and their meat is also considered a delicacy in some regions. Despite steep population declines driven by poaching, habitat loss, and inbreeding, only one species — Temminck's pangolin of Africa -- is currently protected under the US Endangered Species Act. Monday's proposal by the US Fish and Wildlife Service would extend that status to all eight known species. In a statement, the agency said it intends to list the four Asian species -- Chinese, Indian, Sunda, and Philippine -- as well as the three other African species: white-bellied, black-bellied, and giant pangolins. "I'm delighted the United States is doing its part to save these adorably odd creatures," said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "Pangolins are on the razor's edge of extinction, and we need to completely shut down any US market for their scales. There's no good reason for anybody to ingest any part of a pangolin." Pangolins are currently protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits international trade for commercial purposes and allows it only under exceptional circumstances. Still, the illegal trade persists. In April, Nigerian authorities seized nearly four tons of trafficked pangolin scales — representing the slaughter of some 2,000 animals. In November 2024, Indonesian officials intercepted another 1.2 tons. US demand remains a factor. Between 2016 and 2020, border officials intercepted 76 shipments of pangolin parts, including scales and products marketed for traditional medicine, according to public data.
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
US moves to protect all species of pangolin, world's most trafficked mammal
The United States on Monday moved to extend federal protections to all species of pangolins -- a step that would tighten trade restrictions and highlight the urgent conservation plight of the world's only scaly mammals. Found in the forests, woodlands, and savannas of Africa and Asia, pangolins are small, nocturnal creatures known for their distinctive appearance, slow and peaceful demeanor, and habit of curling into a ball when threatened. Often likened to a walking pinecone, they use long, sticky tongues to feast on ants and termites, give birth to a single pup each year -- and are the most heavily trafficked mammals on Earth. Their keratin scales are coveted in traditional medicine, and their meat is also considered a delicacy in some regions. Despite steep population declines driven by poaching, habitat loss, and inbreeding, only one species — Temminck's pangolin of Africa -- is currently protected under the US Endangered Species Act. Monday's proposal by the US Fish and Wildlife Service would extend that status to all eight known species. In a statement, the agency said it intends to list the four Asian species -- Chinese, Indian, Sunda, and Philippine -- as well as the three other African species: white-bellied, black-bellied, and giant pangolins. "I'm delighted the United States is doing its part to save these adorably odd creatures," said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "Pangolins are on the razor's edge of extinction, and we need to completely shut down any US market for their scales. There's no good reason for anybody to ingest any part of a pangolin." Pangolins are currently protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which prohibits international trade for commercial purposes and allows it only under exceptional circumstances. Still, the illegal trade persists. In April, Nigerian authorities seized nearly four tons of trafficked pangolin scales — representing the slaughter of some 2,000 animals. In November 2024, Indonesian officials intercepted another 1.2 tons. US demand remains a factor. Between 2016 and 2020, border officials intercepted 76 shipments of pangolin parts, including scales and products marketed for traditional medicine, according to public data. ia/sms
The Guardian
05-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Elephants and rhinos at increased risk of poaching due to Trump funding cuts, groups say
Environmentalists have urged the Trump administration to reverse its decision to cut off funding for key conservation work aimed at saving iconic at-risk species, including anti-poaching patrols for vulnerable rhinos and elephants. International conservation grants administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) have been frozen by Trump, throwing conservation non-profits around the world into disarray. These grants, amounting to tens of millions of dollars, help protect imperiled species in countries that lack the US's financial muscle to combat threats such as poaching. An environmental group, the Center for Biological Diversity, said it would sue the FWS if the funding isn't restored. It said the money is vital for patrols safeguarding rhinos in Africa, which have suffered a 94% population decline over the past century, as well as efforts to reduce human-elephant conflict and help conserve species such as freshwater turtles and monarch butterflies. 'The Trump administration's funding freeze for anti-poaching patrols and other international conservation work is maddening, heartbreaking and very illegal,' said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director at the center. 'These Fish and Wildlife Service funds help protect elephants, rhinos and other animals across the globe that Americans love. No one voted to sacrifice the world's most iconic wildlife to satisfy some unelected billionaire's reckless power trip.' In a letter to the FWS, the center said that the funding halt violated the US Endangered Species Act, which requires the government to consider at-risk species in its decisions, and flouted proper agency procedure in rescinding funding. 'This insanity has to stop or some of the world's most endangered animals will die,' said Uhlemann. The freeze on grants is part of a broader crackdown on US foreign aid by Trump and his billionaire backer Elon Musk. A judge has ordered the freeze to be reversed, although the administration has yet to comply with the directive. In his previous term in office, Trump sought to weaken the Endangered Species Act and has set about trying to bypass the conservation law during his latest term. The president has demanded that a little-known committee, nicknamed 'the God squad' due to its ability to decide if a species becomes extinct, help push through fossil fuel and logging projects in the US even if they doom a species. Experts have said that the use of the committee in this way is likely illegal. A court case may now unfold over the stymying of FWS grants for international conservation, too. Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion Alongside illegal poaching, legal hunting tours in Africa are popular with some Americans, including Donald Trump Jr, who was pictured holding a severed elephant's tail more than a decade ago. The FWS was contacted for comment on the potential lawsuit.
