A new study digs into the market for endangered and threatened snakes, revealing threats to both species and human health.
Nearly a million endangered and threatened snakes are legally sold on the international market each year, on average — but that’s just the tip of the iceberg compared to the total number of living and dead snakes shipped around the world, according to researchers and other experts.
The trade not only puts many snake species at risk but also poses a potential danger to human health and even entire ecosystems, says Fleur Hierink, a researcher with the Institute of Global Health at the University of Geneva.
“The trade in live, venomous snakes can potentially contribute to increased risks of snakebite among catchers, traders and owners, and might have an effect on conservation through the introduction of alien species,” says Hierink.
To quantify that risk, especially concerning human health, Hierink and her collaborators examined 44 years of snake-trade records, covering an important subset of data from 1975 through 2018. The data was accessed through a database maintained by the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species, the international body which regulates the trade in threatened plants and animals.
The results, published in June in the journal Biological Conservation, calculated that 6.2 million CITES-listed live snakes were traded during that period, along with 34.5 million snake skins (either whole or processed into products such as handbags and belts). The trade also included more than 48,000 snake bodies, and hundreds of skulls, heads and other body parts.
The Shocking Number of Snakes Traded Internationally Each Year • The Revelator
Nearly a million endangered and threatened snakes are legally sold on the international market each year, on average — but that’s just the tip of the iceberg compared to the total number of living and dead snakes shipped around the world, according to researchers and other experts.
The trade not only puts many snake species at risk but also poses a potential danger to human health and even entire ecosystems, says Fleur Hierink, a researcher with the Institute of Global Health at the University of Geneva.
“The trade in live, venomous snakes can potentially contribute to increased risks of snakebite among catchers, traders and owners, and might have an effect on conservation through the introduction of alien species,” says Hierink.
To quantify that risk, especially concerning human health, Hierink and her collaborators examined 44 years of snake-trade records, covering an important subset of data from 1975 through 2018. The data was accessed through a database maintained by the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species, the international body which regulates the trade in threatened plants and animals.
The results, published in June in the journal Biological Conservation, calculated that 6.2 million CITES-listed live snakes were traded during that period, along with 34.5 million snake skins (either whole or processed into products such as handbags and belts). The trade also included more than 48,000 snake bodies, and hundreds of skulls, heads and other body parts.
The Shocking Number of Snakes Traded Internationally Each Year • The Revelator