How are plant and animal species threatened by trade?
Answer… Trade in wild animals, plants, and wildlife products, ranging from mahogany to macaws, is enormous and lucrative – worth as much as US$160 billion a year. The trade involves hundreds of millions of wild plants and animals from tens of thousands of species. To provide a glimpse of the scale of wildlife trafficking, there are records of over 100 million tonnes of fish, 1.5 million live birds and 440,000 tonnes of medicinal plants in trade in just one year. Fur and hides feed the fashion and curio industries, while bones, gall bladders, horns, scent glands, and other animal parts fetch exorbitant prices as ingredients for traditional Asian medicines and cuisine. In addition, wild plants, by the million, nourish a growing international market for ornamental plants, plant-based medicines – both western and Oriental – and herbal health products. Many exotic and rare species of plants are also sold. Wildlife trade is by no means always a problem and most wildlife trade is legal. How
