Abstract:

【Objective】The objective of this research is to understand the characteristics of current illegal-hunting cases of amphibians and reptiles in Jiangsu Province, explore the trend of cases, and provide information to fight crime and protect wildlife resources.【Method】Based on illegal hunting and trade case data from the Forestry Public Security Judicial Identification Center of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration over the past three years (2017-2019), we focused on all cases of amphibians and reptiles that occurred in Jiangsu Province, and analyzed the case types and numbers, the time of occurrence and region, the involved animal species and number of each species, the species protection level, the inter-species relevance, etc.【Result】① The number of illegal trade cases of amphibians and reptiles in Jiangsu Province has increased over the past three years. Among all investigated animals, Testudines had the highest annual growth rate in both case number and involved species. ② About 76.0% of the amphibian and reptile species involved in the illegal trade cases were in the list of CITES, and “The List of National Protected Terrestrial Wild Animals with Important Ecological, Economic and Scientific Values”. ③ More than one species was involved in 66.0% of the cases. Animals belonging to the same order are most likely to appear in the same case with the highest relevance. The animals from Caudata and Serpentes appeared in the same case, with a positive correlation. Positive correlation also occurred between Lacertilia and Testudines, Lacertilia and Crocodyliformes, Lacertilia and Anura, in a decreasing manner. ④ According to the location of the applicants claimed for inspection, illegal trade cases occurred in all prefecture-level cities in Jiangsu Province. Among them, Nanjing, Yancheng and Xuzhou were severely afflicted cities, which contributed 51.3% of the total cases in the whole province. Cases related to Anura mainly occurred in Yancheng, while cases related to Crocodyliformes mainly occurred in Nanjing. Other cases, such as those related to Testudines, were mainly distributed in Nanjing and Wuxi, Serpentes cases were mainly distributed in Xuzhou and Nanjing, and Lacertilia cases were more likely to be found in Nanjing and Changzhou. ⑤ Regarding the temporal distribution, the peak season for illegal trade cases of amphibians and reptiles in Jiangsu Province was from May to September. The cases related to Serpentes, Anura and Testudines mainly occurred in June, August and September, respectively. There were no obvious trend for the cases of Caudata, Lacertilia and Crocodyliformes.【Conclusion】① The number of illegal amphibian and reptile cases increased in the last three years, and animal species involved in illegal hunting cases belong to different taxonomic groups. ② Illegal cases regarding Testudines and Lacertilia always occurred in the pet market, while those regarding Anura usually took place in the catering market; whereas, the Serpentes cases were found in both markets. Therefore, we should strengthen supervision and administrative services in pet and catering markets. ③ According to the species involved and time of occurrence, it is necessary to develop a specific protection strategy for different cities. It is very important to strengthen the import and export management of wild animals, to evaluate the potential risk of alien species, and to improve the handling and protection systems for alien species. By analyzing the characteristics of illegal trade cases of amphibians and reptiles in Jiangsu Province, this research provides strong scientific instruction for fighting illegal activities and protecting wildlife resources.

Key words: amphibians, reptiles, illegal hunting and trade, wildlife protection