Wild animals are being poached on a massive scale with millions of individual animals of thousands of species worldwide killed or captured from their native habitats. Poaching poses a growing threat to elephants, rhinos and other charismatic animals, as well as to smaller and more obscure creatures, like certain lizards and monkeys.

Why are animals poached ?

Poachers sometimes kill and capture animals to sell them locally or for the global trade in wildlife. Wildlife trading is a major black market that has increased alongside rising in Asia a major consumer of wildlife and the advent of e- commerse and social media websites. Some animals such as birds, reptiles and primates, are captured live so that they can be kept or sold as exotic pets. Slaughtered animals, on the other hand, have commercial value as food, jewlery, decor, or traditional medicine. The ivory tasks for African elephants, for example, are carved into trinkets or display pieces. The scales of pangolins, small animals that eat ants, are ground into powder and consumed for there purported healing powers. The meat of apes, snakes and other bush animals is considered a delicacy in parts of Africa.

A message for ending poaching.

The best best, thing you could do to end poaching across the world is to educate yourself on the facts and to share what you've learned with everyone and most of all is to not buy products that are made from animals.

Nicole Genovese 6.2