Page 77 - World of Animals - Issue #29

CONSERVING

THE PANGOLIN

These scaly, solitary,
secretive animals have found

themselves unfortunate
victims of wildlife trade and

are now one of the most
trafficked animals on Earth

Words Naomi Harding

Covered in scales made of keratin, pangolins are curious
little creatures. They scurry around the forest floors on a

never-ending search for ants, consuming up to 23,000 of
the insects per day – that’s more than seven million ants
in a year. Although they’re commonly referred to as scaly
anteaters and likened to armadillos, they actually have
very little in common with either.
The name pangolin comes from the Malay word
‘penggulung’ meaning roller, a nod to the animal’s
defensive tactic of instantly curling into a ball when they’re
frightened, in a bid to protect their un-scaled undersides.
Pangolins are burrowing mammals and make their homes
by using their long claws to sift through the soil and their
stout bodies to rock from side to side, creating a space to
settle down in.
The illegal trade has mostly been driven by high
demand and high profit. It’s estimated that demand in

China amounts to 200,000 individual pangolins per year,
earning them the not-so-glamorous title of the most

trafficked mammal on Earth. The price of scales on the
black market can fetch anything up to £500 per kilogram

(around £227 per pound), and this figure is steadily rising.
At present, pangolin conservation seems to be stuck
in a vicious circle; as the number of remaining pangolins
decreases, their commercial value on the black market
increases, which further fuels the demand for pangolins
as a status of wealth, and ultimately increases poaching
efforts to fulfil the demand.

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