Health Editor’s Note: Elephants, rhinos, lions, tiger, leopards, pangolins, and other irreplaceable animals have NOTHING that humans need or that will improve health of/ or sexual performance of said humans. Having pictures taken with slain animals is also a reason to kill them. Ask the owner of Jimmy Johns, Jimmy John Liautaud, about that one. Yes, many pictures of him taken with an elephant and a leopard. I have never been in nor will I ever be in a Jimmy Johns fast food freak show and would consider it a favor if others followed suit. Humans are in the process of annihilating so many animals from the face of the earth. It is a supply and demand market strategy, from the poachers to the deluded man at the other end who thinks he will be sexually enhanced by the product that he is willing to pay so much for, that is wiping out many awesome species. Deaths for Greed and Delusion, things that only humans are capable of giving importance to. Wake Up! It is already too late for so many others…..Carol
Singapore Officials Set Horrifying Record, Busting 14-Ton Shipment of Smuggled Pangolin Scales
By Tom McKay, Gizmodo
Video: Most Poached Mammal of the World
Authorities in Singapore have seized more than 14 tons of scales of pangolin scales bound for Vietnam in what Paul Thomson of the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Pangolin Specialist Group described as the largest single such shipment on record, the New York Times reported on Monday. Thomson told the paper that the IUCN estimated around 36,000 pangolins were killed to harvest the scales, which is forbidden by international law.
Pangolins are scaly anteaters poached for both their scales, which are sometimes marketed as a (scientifically unsupported) treatment for various health conditions, as well as their meat, which is considered a delicacy in some regions. The pangolin trade was banned by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species in 2016, according to the Washington Post. However, domestic trade remains legal in some countries including China, where pangolins are nearly extinct, and Vietnam.
Unfortunately, pangolins do not fare anywhere near as well against humans, who can easily kill or capture them when they curl into a defensive posture. They do poorly in captivity and usually die within months of capture from a host of health problems. (Even those pangolins rescued alive by authorities often still face a grim end, according to the South China Morning Post.)
Virtually all trade in them is thus believed to be tied to the black market. By some estimates, pangolins are the most trafficked mammal in the world, far outstripping elephants by raw numbers. Conservation group WildAid told Reuters it estimates 100,000 are poached from the wild each year.
It’s not clear from the Times report what species of pangolin fell victim to the poaching operation discovered in Singapore; the IUCN Red List, however, classifies all four Asian species as either endangered or critically endangered, while their four African cousins are classified as vulnerable. All populations are listed as decreasing.
Per a WildAid report from 2016:
Their elusive nature has made it difficult to estimate how many still exist in the wild. However, hunters, traders and locals have reported drastic declines in sightings of Asian species across different parts of their range. Interviews with hunters in 2007 and 2011 suggested populations of the Sunda Pangolin in Peninsular Malaysia have fallen dramatically, with 95% of hunters recognizing severe declines, especially since 1990, when the commercial trade began to escalate. The rarity of sightings in the wild, coupled with the massive volume of scales and carcasses seen in trade over the past decade, suggests that all eight species may be on the brink of extinction.
In a joint statement, Singaporean customs and parks officials said the shipment (labeled as “frozen beef”) was intercepted during inspection at Pasir Panjang Export Inspection Station. The officials estimated the massive pile pangolin scales as worth approximately $38.7 million, far outstripping a prior record-breaking bust in China in 2016. Also in the container was around 390 pounds of carved elephant ivory, which officials estimated to be worth an additional $88,500.’
“Under the Endangered Species (Import & Export) Act, the maximum penalty for illegal import, export and re-export of wildlife is a fine of up to $500,000 and/or 2 years’ imprisonment,” Singaporean authorities wrote in the statement. “The same penalties apply to transit or transhipment of illegal wildlife species, including their parts and derivatives.”
“The Singapore Government adopts a zero-tolerance stance on the use of Singapore as a conduit to smuggle endangered species and their parts and derivatives,” they added. “Our agencies will continue to collaborate and maintain vigilance to tackle the illegal wildlife trade.”
Carol graduated from Riverside White Cross School of Nursing in Columbus, Ohio and received her diploma as a registered nurse. She attended Bowling Green State University where she received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History and Literature. She attended the University of Toledo, College of Nursing, and received a Master’s of Nursing Science Degree as an Educator.
She has traveled extensively, is a photographer, and writes on medical issues. Carol has three children RJ, Katherine, and Stephen – one daughter-in-law; Katie – two granddaughters; Isabella Marianna and Zoe Olivia – and one grandson, Alexander Paul. She also shares her life with her husband Gordon Duff, many cats, and two rescues.
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Thanks for the JJ tip; I ate there all the time, but will choose better. FYI, I heard today that a friends son purchased wildflower honey in West Virginia, produced by disabled Vets. Could you allow apiaries on your farm to help disabled vets? Well that’s a no brainer. What a nice program. Worth a mention on VT.
Note: I changed my syntax from eat to ate. I won’t be back, unless there is change. Thanks again Carol.
Sad that certain Chinese and Vietnamese, mainly Chinese, think the scales are some magical elixir. What are these Einsteins going to do when there are no pangolins left???
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