Star tortoise, smooth-coated and small-clawed otters up-listed for protection globally at India’s behest
Star tortoise, one of the most trafficked species of tortoise in India, along with smooth-coated and small-clawed otters, which are highly threatened semi-aquatic mammals, will now enjoy the highest degree of protection as there will be a complete international ban enforced on their trade.
In simple terms this means that these will now have the highest protection globally and anyone caught with either a live animal or its parts anywhere in the world will face severe punitive action.
The move aimed at protecting the threatened population of these species came on Monday after the proposal by India for up-listing these to Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which lists species threatened with extinction.
It was approved during the ongoing Conference of the Parties (COP18) at Geneva. It was in 2018 that India had submitted changes in the listing of some wildlife including 18 species of sharks.
Dr Saket Badola, head of TRAFFIC India, a wildlife trade monitoring network, who is in Geneva for the COP18, said it was a major success for conservation of these wildlife species.
"India's effort to protect star tortoises, smooth-coated otters as well as small clawed otters got a very wide support and got included in Appendix I. This means these species can no longer be traded internationally and it now leads to better protection of these species," he said.
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| Star tortoise, smooth-coated and small-clawed otters up-listed for protection globally at India’s behest |
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Experts say this was certainly a big day for the country as the illegal trade of star tortoise from India had surged in an unprecedented manner in the last decade.
"Large scale seizures were being carried out across India on a daily basis, which meant they were being gathered in huge quantities from the wild for trade and even being bred in captivity. If this continues, their population might soon go extinct," said a senior official from Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB).
The official added that these are popular pets as they are considered harbingers of good fortune.
Atul Borker, an otter conservationist, said the species are poached for their skin and body parts. "Smooth- coated otters were found in good numbers in the Konkan belt of Maharashtra where they have adapted to living in the mangroves, apart from being found in Goa and Karanataka. While the small clawed otters too are found in the Western ghat strip right from Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka to Kerala," said Borker, who is also the Asia coordinator (West) for the IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group.
A conservationist who works with the forest department to bust wildlife trading rings said that unfortunately the awareness within the department about illegal trading of wildlife species was limited. "We need capacity building, high-end technology as well as training workshops in every state," he said.
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