Why does the Live Trade in wildlife exist?
The answer can be obtained from the CITES Trade Database, which is publicly available.
For every CITES permit issued, the purpose of the transaction is recorded, which include:
- Breeding in captivity
- Circus
- Zoo
- Education
- Reintroduction into the wild
- Scientific purposes
The welfare and well-being of the wild animals involved in the global live trade are often not taken into consideration.
Read more on the global live wildlife trade in this Daily Maverick article.