It seems that animal poachers are using peer-reviewed journals to discover and locate newly discovered snakes, frogs and lizards in the wild. In turn, academic journals started to withhold the geographical locations of new discoveries.
Many species, both past and recent discoveries, are facing dire risks of extinction. Most scientific groups often enjoy sharing a new discovery as best they can. But in doing so, they also reveal the species' geographical and biological data. These are often enough for illegal poachers to track new finds and get ahead in the illegal trade.
The discovery of two new large gecko species in the Zootaxa academic journal already contained such omission. The announcement just said the new species were found in southern China, which makes it harder to pinpoint the geographical location of the new discoveries.
"Due to the popularity of this genus as novelty pets, and recurring cases of scientific descriptions driving herpetofauna to near-extinction by commercial collectors, we do not disclose the collecting localities of these restricted-range species in this publication," the authors wrote.
The research team added that additional information was presented to applicable government agencies. The information is available to fellow scientific groups upon request.
Biologist Mark Auliya from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research said the publication of the species' geographical locations can become a threat to the new species' survival. Auliya is also the co-chair of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) group of monitor lizard specialists.
Information on the whereabouts of the newly discovered species can be misused and monetized by traders and illegal poachers. It could also generate a market demand for the rare, endangered and protected finds that are endemic to a locality. Highly colorful, charismatic and unique species are often most vulnerable to animal poaching.
The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature regulates a standard system of zoological terminology to ensure that every animal's scientific name is universally accepted. The commission does not require scientific teams to provide the exact locations such as GPS coordinates for new finds. However, many teams find that the addition of the species' actual locations makes the scientific finding complete.
Peer-reviewed journals bearing the geographical locations of new species are not precisely mapped. However, the information included in the academic papers are often enough for black market traders to track these species using local contracts. Illegal traders often seduce poor, local farmers with cash to help in the search.
Interestingly, when the discovery of a leaf-tailed gecko endemic to Madagascar appeared in the Zootaxa academic journal in summer 2015, the species started to appear in Europe.
Taxonomist Marinus Hoogmoed and his wife discovered the Dendrobates galactonotus, a light blue morph of the poison dart frog, in 2013. The announcement was made in the journal Phyllomedusa and contained its whereabouts in Amazonian Brazil.
In three short months, a German terrarium keeper sent Hoogmoed a photo of their find. The terrarium keeper said he made an offer in the German trade circuit with a price tag between €350 and €700 ($380 and $760). Hoogmoed issued a complaint to Brazilian authorities but to no avail.
"The problem is that inspection and law enforcement in Brazil for wildlife is, at the least, weak," said Hoogmoed, explaining that since the trade does not involve high-profile animal or huge sums of money, there is very little interest to make the complaint a juridical case.
Photo : Frank Vassen | Flickr
