The magnitude of legal wildlife trade and implications for species survival
Abstract
The unsustainable use of wildlife is a primary driver of global biodiversity loss. No comprehensive global dataset exists on what species are in trade, their geographic origins, and trade’s ultimate impacts, which limits our ability to sustainably manage trade. The United States is one of the world’s largest importers of wildlife, with trade data compiled in the US Law Enforcement Management Information System (LEMIS). The LEMIS provides the most comprehensive publicly accessible wildlife trade database of non-the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) listed species. In total, 21,097 species and over 2.85 billion individuals were traded over the past 22 y (2000-2022). When LEMIS data are combined with CITES records, the United States imported over 29,445 wild species, including over 50% of all globally described species in some taxonomic groups. For most taxa, around half of the individuals are declared as sourced from the wild. Although the LEMIS provides the only means to assess trade volumes for many taxa, without any associated data on most wild populations, it is impossible to assess the impact on biodiversity, sustainability of trade, or any potential risk of pest or pathogen spread. These insights underscore the considerable underestimation of trade and the urgent need for other countries to adopt similar mechanisms to accurately record trade.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (18)
Benjamin Michael Marshall
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling
Aubrey L. Alamshah
Department of Biological Sciences, Binghamton University (SUNY)
Pedro Cardoso
Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c), Laboratory for Integrative Biodiversity Research (LIBRe), CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa
Phillip Cassey
Invasion Science & Wildlife Ecology Lab, University of Adelaide
Sebastian Chekunov
Invasion Science & Wildlife Ecology Lab, University of Adelaide
Evan A. Eskew
Institute for Interdisciplinary Data Sciences, University of Idaho
Caroline S. Fukushima
Finnish Museum of Natural History Luomus, University of Helsinki
Pablo García-Díaz
Instituto de Ecología Regional (UNT-CONICET)
Meredith L. Gore
Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland College Park
Julie L. Lockwood
Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers University
Andrew L. Rhyne
Roger Williams University; Department of Biology, Marine Biology and Environmental Science Bristol
James S. Sinclair
Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt
Colin Thomas Strine
Department of Natural Sciences, Dickinson State University
Oliver C. Stringham
Rutgers Climate and Energy Institute, Rutgers University
Michael F. Tlusty
School for the Environment, University of Massachusetts Boston
Jose W. Valdez
German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Freyja Watters
Invasion Science & Wildlife Ecology Lab, University of Adelaide
Alice C. Hughes
School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong