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The global illegal wildlife trade has been threatening the already endangered wildlife that may lead to their extinction.
Palawan hornbill
Closer to home, law enforcers are having a hard time catching the bad guys, who are openly offering online the illegally caught wildlife.
With the use of the Internet, smartphones and social media, illegal wildlife traders are becoming bolder, although cautious with wildlife law enforcers zeroing in on online illegal racket.
So-called middlemen, or conduits between sellers and buyers, have become smarter to avoid arrest through detection by system-generated programs.
They use misspelled words, special characters, or emojis, that allow them to do business without being spammed or flagged.
Transnational crime
Global illegal wildlife trade is considered a transnational crime.
A report titled, 'Addressing Illegal Wildlife Trade in the Philippines,' said the value of IWT worldwide is estimated at $10 billion to $23 billion a year, making it the fourth most lucrative illegal business after narcotics, human trafficking and arms.
The report was by the Asian Development Bank, Germany's Global Environment Facility and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
The value of IWT in the Philippines is estimated at P50 billion a year (roughly $1 billion), This includes the market value of wildlife, their resources, ecological role and importance, damage to habitats incurred during poaching, and loss in potential ecotourism revenues.
The Philippines, a source, consumer and transit point of IWT, is a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, an international treaty that seeks to curb biodiversity loss.
Philippines' most traded wildlife
The Philippines' most-traded wildlife are the Philippine forest turtle, Palawan pangolin, hawksbill turtle, blue-naped parrot, Southeast Asian box turtle, Palawan hill mynah, Asian leaf turtle and tokay gecko.
Lately, however, assorted native bird species have been targeted by hunters to cater to the increasing domestic demand and for export, catching the watchful eye of wildlife trade watchdog Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce (Traffic).
Traffic is a leading nongovernment group working globally against illegal trade in wild animals and plants for both biodiversity...