An eight tonne shipment of pangolin scales was seized at the northern Hai Phong port in March, the city’s customs department said this week.
Dr. Dang Tat The of Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, a
wildlife expert, said that this was the largest seizure of pangolin
scales ever in Vietnam.
Pangolin trafficking is not rare in Vietnam, where it is legally protected and categorized as endangered.
The shy, tiny creature, which resembles a scaly anteater, is the world's
most heavily trafficked mammal despite bans. Pangolins are hunted in
Vietnam and its neighborhood for their meat and the alleged medicinal
properties of their scales.
A December 2017 study by wildlife trade monitoring group Traffic and
Australia’s University of Adelaide found that of the 10 countries and
territories with the largest number of trafficking incidents, seven are in Asia – China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Laos, and Indonesia.
