A bad deal
Humans have always used natural resources in the form of plants and animals as natural remedies. Many animal species are used, and this has increased during the last century.
In addition to using parts of the animals as natural remedies, beauty products and arts, the increase in tourism over the past 60 years has contributed to the threat of extinction. Poachers shoot endangered species, and stuffed or dried parts of animals or birds’ eggs are sold to tourists. Different rules for hunting and trade may apply in the tourist country and in the tourist’s home country. Sweden has one of the world’s toughest legislations for trade with animals and plants.
In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), body parts from many different animals are used, some of which are endangered. Shark fins are believed to have medicinal benefits and are also consumed in soup as a status symbol due to their high cost.
Photo: Chris-73-CC-BY-SA
To obtain shark fins, sharks are caught and their fins are cut off while they are still alive. Often, the sharks, now alive but without fins, are then discarded back into the water. Many of the shark species used for shark fin products are endangered. Shark fin soup is available in restaurants in many parts of the world.
Photo: Cloneofsnake-CC-BY-SA
Seahorses are used both in traditional medicine and sold dried as souvenirs to tourists. Most seahorse species are endangered.
Photo: Jean-Pierre-Dalbera-CC-BY.
The special seahorse
Seahorses are fish that live in tropical oceans. They have a special body shape and swimming technique where they slowly swim “standing up”, by moving their dorsal fin and pectoral fins. The seahorse has a powerful tail that it holds on to kelp or seaweed with, so as not to be swept away by the currents of the water. They mainly eat plankton and small crustaceans that they suck in through a narrow, trunk-like mouth.
Seahorses are used in traditional natural remedies. They are purported to increase sexual desire, cure diseases of the heart, lungs and liver, asthma, fever and relieve pain. The seahorses are dried and sold illegally. In Peru, a major crackdown was carried out in 2019 against a smuggling cargo of 12 million dried seahorses. They were to be sold on the black market. Seahorses are also fished to be sold to aquariums. That amounts to about a couple of hundred thousand seahorses a year. Most die before they get to their trade destination. Seahorses are very sensitive fish, and small changes in water quality cause them to perish. Trade has made many species of seahorses endangered.
Bear bile is used in traditional Chinese medicine and is believed to possess several medicinal properties. Bears are captured and kept in cages to be tapped for bile.
Photo: Dan-Bennett-CC-BY
Ivory from elephants and rhinoceroses is used both as souvenirs and in traditional medicine. For example, powdered rhino horn is believed to increase male libido. Poachers seeking ivory cut off the horns from the animals, leaving them in pain and at great risk of infection. The ivory trade contributes to the endangerment of these species.
Photo: Dr.-William-Folwds-CC-BY-SA
Many different reptiles, such as snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and turtles, are used in various ways in traditional medicine. The golden coin turtle (Cuora trifasciata) is one of the world's most endangered turtle species. This is partly due to the belief that medicines made from the turtle could cure cancer, although there is no evidence to support such claims.
Photo: Turtle10012-CC-BY-SA
Bear bile as medicine and rhinoceros horn as a remedy for sexual desire
Bear bile is commonly used as medicine. Asian bears are captured and kept in cages for the bear’s entire lifetime, to drain bile from the gallbladder. Bile is used in many natural remedies, but also in shampoos and soaps.
Rhinoceros horn is ground down and used for a wide range of purposes, from increasing sexual performance and curing diseases to being a status symbol used for knife handles. That trade has almost wiped out several species of rhinoceros. Ivory from the elephant’s tusks has also been used for arts and medicine. Today, there is a total ban on the ivory trade in almost all countries. Ground bones from big cats such as leopards and tigers, substances from the glands of musk deer and from saiga antelope, and products from snakes and crocodiles are also common.
The pangolin is one of the world's most poached and smuggled animals. The scales of the pangolin are ground up and used in traditional Chinese medicine. In 2017, 3 tons of confiscated pangolin scales were incinerated in Cameroon as a step to halt the illegal trade of pangolins.
Photo: Kenneth-Cameron-CC-BY
In Nairobi, Kenya, in 2016, the world's largest ivory burn from elephants and rhinoceroses was organized. The tusks were confiscated from illegal trade, and the burning was arranged to send a message to smugglers and buyers that the ivory trade must be stopped.
Photo: Mwangi-Kirubi-CC-BY-SA
What can I do?
Do not buy souvenirs or natural remedies that are made from animals that may be endangered.
Get involved with an organisation that works to stop the trade with endangered species. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is working on these issues.