The United States has legally imported close to 3 billion wild plants and animals over the past 22 years, making it one of the largest global hubs for wildlife trade, according to a report highlighted by New Scientist. From 2000 to 2022, nearly 30,000 different species, ranging from songbirds to reptiles, entered the country legally, with many taken directly from the wild.
“The numbers are absolutely massive,” said Alice Hughes, a researcher at the University of Hong Kong and co-author of the study. However, she noted that these figures likely underestimate the true scale of wildlife trade, as they only account for legal exchanges. “We are just scratching the surface,” Hughes remarked.
A Closer Look at the Numbers
Hughes and her team analyzed data from the US Law Enforcement Management Information System (LEMIS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). These databases track legal wildlife trade, providing a glimpse into the staggering volume of imports.
During the study period, the US imported:
- Over 11,200 species of terrestrial vertebrates,
- 6600 species of invertebrates,
- 2885 marine vertebrates, and
- 280 plant types.
In total, this accounted for more than 2.85 billion individual plants and animals. Around 90% of imported mammals and birds were taken directly from the wild, as were approximately half of the reptiles and fish. In terms of sheer numbers, arachnids, insects, and fish were the most frequently imported.
The Drivers of Wildlife Trade
More than three-quarters of the trades were for commercial purposes, including the pet trade, ornamental uses, and the fashion industry. Stefan Prost from the University of Oulu in Finland highlighted the sheer scale of the trade, calling it “a magnitude of the issue.”
However, the wildlife trade comes with significant risks. It often facilitates the introduction of invasive species, as well as harmful pests and pathogens. The process can also take a devastating toll on wild populations, as many animals perish during capture, transportation, or in facilities.
“For every [animal] that is successfully imported, you don’t know how many died on the way,” Hughes emphasized.
Conservation Challenges
The lack of comprehensive data on both legal and illegal wildlife trade poses significant hurdles for conservation efforts. “In some instances, when a species is identified [as endangered], it is already being decimated in the wild before it can be listed for protection,” Hughes said.
Hugh Possingham from the University of Queensland in Australia called the findings “eye-opening,” underscoring the urgent need for better tracking and regulation of wildlife trade.
