African pangolins, documentary film

Posted on March 25, 2020 by petrel41

This 2019 video says about itself:

Eye of the Pangolin is the story of two men on a mission to share the wonder of all four species of African pangolin on camera for the first time ever.

Follow their extraordinary journey to remote locations on the African continent, from arid savannah to exotic jungles. Become captivated by these extraordinary creatures as the filmmakers meet the people who are caring for and studying pangolins in a desperate attempt to save them from being poached and traded into extinction.

Filmed in Ultra High Definition, this ambitious documentary is freely available online for commercial-free viewing.

Our goal at Pangolin.Africa is to make Eye Of The Pangolin one of the most widely watched wildlife documentaries ever. If enough people learn to care for this animal, there is a chance that it can be saved. So please share this film with everyone you believe will be touched by this magical creature. If we don’t do something now, the illegal wildlife trade to the east will ensure that pangolins will disappear from the planet within the next 10-20 years.

The film is directed and narrated by Bruce Young, co-director of the award-winning Blood Lions documentary.

Due to the sensitive nature of some of the content on the film, we would recommend an age limit of 13 years or younger.

Copyright ©2019 Pangolin Africa NPC. All rights reserved

Pangolin criminals caught in China

Posted on December 29, 2016 by petrel41

This video says about itself:

15 October 2015

They’ve been called the world’s most trafficked animal you’ve never heard of. Pangolins are notoriously difficult to rehabilitate and release, but one woman in Namibia is getting it right, thanks to lessons learned from one of these scaly anteaters. Meet Katiti!

By Nick Visser:

Literal Tons Of The World’s Most Trafficked Mammal Seized In China

Pangolins simply can’t catch a break.

12/28/2016 05:30 pm ET

Chinese authorities seized more than 3 tons of animal parts taken from the bodies of dead pangolins earlier this month in one of the country’s largest smuggling busts involving the world’s most trafficked mammal.

Customs officials found 101 bags of pangolin scales hidden in a shipment of timber during a routine inspection in Shanghai, according to reports from local media. Estimates say the scales came from 5,000 to 7,500 different animals and could have had a street value of more than $2 million.

Pangolins have quickly become a striking face in the fight against wildlife crime, with almost a million trafficked over the past decade. All eight species are now listed as “vulnerable,” “endangered” or “critically endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.

The creatures, also known as scaly anteaters, are hunted primarily for their scales, which are used in traditional medicine in China and Vietnam in attempts to cure everything from cancer to asthma. However, there is no scientific basis to those claims. The scales are made from the same material as human fingernails.

Authorities have busted several massive pangolin smuggling rings over the past few years, many of which traffic thousands of animals at a time. A raid in Indonesia netted some 4,000 animals last year and more than 4 tons were discovered in Hong Kong, labeled as plastic, in June.

Delegates from nearly every nation voted to ban the international sale of pangolins and their parts in September during this year’s meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as CITES. All species of pangolins were given the strictest protection afforded to threatened animals, but the bust in China shows a rampant market still exists for contraband wildlife.

Shanghai customs officials arrested three people who have been accused of smuggling the parts this month. They’re suspected of importing illicit pangolin scales from Africa into China since at least 2015, Agence France Presse reports.

Despite recent protections, it’s estimated more than 10,000 pangolins are poached every year.

Chinese Officials Investigated For Allegedly Serving Endangered Pangolin At Banquet. The world’s most trafficked mammal is protected in China. Eating pangolin carries a penalty of up to 10 years behind bars: here.

China Arrests ‘Pangolin Princess’ Who Loves Eating Endangered Animals: here.

Animal traffickers are taking advantage of remote ivory trade routes to smuggle pangolins – one of the world’s most endangered animals – out of Central Africa, a new study has found: here.

Save pangolins, video

Posted on February 22, 2015 by petrel41

This video says about itself:

What is a Pangolin?

19 February 2016

Today is World Pangolin Day! Find out all about the amazing and critically endangered pangolin – the world’s only scaly mammal!

Learn more about ZSL [Zoological Society of London]’s work to protect the pangolin here.

April 27 [2015]–Indonesian National Police Seize Major Shipment of Pangolins, Arrest Smuggler: here.

Rediscovering the pangolin, the world’s most trafficked mammal: here.

The illegal trade in live pangolins, their meat, and their scales in Myanmar is booming says TRAFFIC published in Global Ecology and Conservation. Their report identifies the Special Development Zone of Mong La as a particular concern: here.

150 pangolins saved from death for quackery

Posted on February 20, 2015 by petrel41

This video says about itself:

With its giant digging claws, the pangolin is nature’s backhoe. And a long, sticky tongue — capable of slurping up thousands of ants or termites every day — makes it the scourge of the bug world.

From Wildlife Extra:

Thai authorities rescue 150 Pangolins destined for traditional medicine

The Thai Army, the Black Rangers, has rescued 150 Pangolins being smuggled from Myanmar to China, via Thailand.

This is the biggest yet seizure of live Pangolins in the city of Chiang Mai, with an estimated value of 3m Thai Baht.

The Pangolin is primarily illegally traded for its scales, which are believed to have strong medical benefits in Traditional Chinese Medicine, although the young are made into soup.

However, no medical evidence exists supporting these beliefs although tens of thousands of Pangolins are cruelly poached in the wild and traded illegally.

World Animal Protection works with the Thai government to improve welfare conditions for wild animals seized in the crackdown against the illegal wildlife trade.

Am Last, Thailand’s World Animal Protection Country Director, says: “Pangolins belong in the wild, not in medicine. The trade in these amazing animals is a serious threat to their survival.

“We highly commend all involved Thai authorities on successfully intercepting one of the biggest illegal shipments of live Pangolins in Thailand. Actions like these help to curb such cruel trade.

“World Animal Protection works to keep wild animals in the wild where they belong and is supporting a comprehensive project to improve the confiscated wild animal keeping skills of the Department of National Parks.

“We call on the authorities to provide the best possible care for these victims of the illegal wildlife trade.”

The rescued Pangolins are currently being cared for and rehabilitated at two wildlife centres in Thailand with an eventual goal of being released back to the wild.

Prince William’s charity, United for Wildlife, has made a big commitments to protect Pangolins and Saturday 21 Feb has been designated World Pangolin Day.

For more information about World Animal Protection visit here.

And for United for Wildlife visit here.

7 ways to celebrate World Pangolin Day: here.

Paper corporation threatens Sumatran rainforest

Posted on January 11, 2008 by petrel41

This video is called The tiger report.

From Wildlife Extra:

Huge Paper Company Trashing Pristine Sumatra Forest

January 2008. An investigative report has found that paper giant Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and its affiliates are constructing a massive logging highway that will split in half one of Indonesia’s most important forests. The legally questionable highway threatens to devastate one of Sumatra’s last large forest blocks, home to two tribes of indigenous people and endangered elephants, tigers and orangutans.

The Bukit Tigapuluh Forest Landscape in central Sumatra contains some of the richest biodiversity on Earth, with more than 250 mammal and bird species.

Sumatran tigers being sold into extinction: here.

Illegal Pangolin Trade Threatens Rare Species: here.

14 tonnes of pangolins seized in Indonesia: here.

October 2011. Marine police in North Sumatra have seized over a hundred pangolins and arrested three men who were en route to Malaysia with the animals: here.

Origins of Borneo elephants: here.