Protecting Endangered Animals: South Africa finds ways to protect pangolins from poachers

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03:22

Much of Africa is grappling with how to protect the endangered pangolin from poachers. Despite efforts to raise awareness, the illegal trade of their scales and meat is still flourishing. CGTN's Yolisa Njamela reports.

Pangolins, often called scaly anteaters, resemble armadillos. They're being hunted and killed in vast numbers.

According to wildlife experts, the eight species of pangolin, found across sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, are one of the world's most trafficked mammals. They are nocturnal, elusive and obscure.

NICCI WRIGHT AFRICAN PANGOLIN WORKING GROUP "The poaching of pangolins purely for their scale is an enormous, enormous venture, which is obviously run by syndicates. It's happening across Africa in all forests in all the towns."

In the past decade, more than a million of these animals have been snatched from their fast-shrinking Asian and African habitats and traded for their scales and meat.

RAY JANSEN, ECOLOGIST TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY "It's increasing exponentially in Africa and in Southern Africa and South Africa in recent years. The Asian demand is huge, local demands from them is huge, and they pay large amounts of money, and if you're poor, you don't have a job, you go to crime."

In South Africa, the problem of pangolin poaching has many concerned.

NICCI WRIGHT AFRICAN PANGOLIN WORKING GROUP "We work closely with the law enforcement with the judiciary, magistrate, prosecutor's that kind of thing it is going on. It's as concerning as the rest of Africa which is a whole scale type of industrial type operation, poaching operation and our pangolins are leaving our continent by a ton load."

RAY JANSEN, ECOLOGIST TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY "Johannesburg is a hot spot, and they approach the public to sell these animals for huge amounts of money. We normally get involved with the South African police service, the department of environmental affairs in particular environmental management inspectorates and arrest these people."

Traffickers often sell the pangolin meat locally and then ship the scales to Asia for use in traditional medicine, though there's no evidence the scales cure anything.

YOLISA NJAMELA JOHANNESBURG "Animal rights activists say one of the ways to combat pangolin poaching is by educating local communities to take ownership and act as custodians of these animals and to ensure that law enforcers hand out harsh punishment."

Professor Jansen believes that young people are part of the answer.

RAY JANSEN, ECOLOGIST TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY "We have to embrace the youth. That's where we gonna put our energy. In every country, right through Africa as well as the demand countries, in particular areas like Asia, such as like Malaysia, China and Vietnam, we need to educate the youth and get their buy in."

Jansen says ambassadors, such as well-known actor Jackie Chan, are critical in the fight against pangolin poaching and more like him are needed. Yolisa Njamela, CGTN, Johannesburg, South Africa.