On one day in August, Nigerian officials recovered more than nine tons of illegal pangolin scales. The stockpile is estimated to be worth $1.7 million in East Asia, where scales are sold for use in traditional medicine.
On August 8, customs officials raided a warehouse in Kaduna, Nigeria, containing 2.3 tons of pangolins, based on information from the Wildlife Justice Commission, a nonprofit organization dedicated to disrupting the wildlife trade . That same day, officials also recovered 7.2 tons of scales from a warehouse in Ogun, Nigeria, also with the help of the WJC.
The raid in Ogun was the largest seizure worldwide since January 2020, when officials discovered 9.5 tons of pangolin scales in an abandoned warehouse in Lagos, Nigeria. Campaigners say Nigeria is a key departure point for African pangolin scales being smuggled into Asia.
Pangolins are found in Africa, India and Southeast Asia, where they are endangered by both forest loss and poaching. The small, scaly creatures are the most trafficked mammal worldwide, conservationists say, with the eight species of pangolin ranging from vulnerable to critically endangered.
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