22 June 2019




Kolkata, Jun 19 (UNI) India could be the next hot spot for Pangolin poachers after African nations, according to Prof Samuel K Wasser, Director Centre for Conservation Biology, University of Washington.

Speaking at a Media Roundtable here at the American Center on Tuesday, Prof Wasser said pangolin trade may have just surpassed international illegal ivory trade and is estimated at USD 4 billion annually.

India, which is home to at least two species of pangolin-- Manis crassicaudata and Chinese Pangolin M. pentadactyla--is going to be the next target of international wildlife criminal organisations as Africa could be soon depleted of pangolins, he opined.

The biologist said there is very little awareness about this shy animal, which is also the most trafficked animal in the world, mainly for its scales that are believed to cure "anything from acne to cancer" in Southeast Asian countries.

Dr Wasser and his team has been collecting pangolin scats for DNA mapping in Vietnam and Nepal with the help of sniffer dogs and the DNA so extracted is added to the pangolin genetics map. 

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