中文

Illegal hunting and selling of wild animals threaten both biodiversity and public health. Diseases such as COVID-19 and others can emerge from the hunting and sale of these animals, affecting humans. Hunting harms animals at the individual level of killing them, but also on a broader scale by reducing biodiversity and, in the worst cases, pushing a species to extinction. Despite the importance of this topic, there isn’t much existing research on illegal hunting in China at a national level.

China is an excellent case for researching this topic because of its rich biodiversity and high public demand for wild animal products. Researchers used a database of trial verdicts in China from January 2014 to March 2020 to search for illegal hunting convictions, finding 9,256 cases. Despite the large number of cases, only 5% of cases accounted for 90% of the animals hunted. This shows that a small fraction of convicted hunters were responsible for the majority of illegal hunting activity.

In total, 3.1 million animals were hunted across all of the cases. 673 different species were identified. Birds (65%) and amphibians (31%) were the most hunted animals. Regarding species variety, 32% of Chinese bird species, 16% of mammals, 10% of reptiles, and 10% of amphibians were included in the hunting data. 25% of China’s land-based vulnerable and endangered species were hunted in this timeframe.

In addition to identifying the animals hunted, the researchers investigated the motivations and locations for illegal hunting. 73% of the convictions were illegal hunting for commercial purposes and 92% were captured for use as animal products. 55% of the cases occurred in croplands, 36% in forests, 7% in wetlands, and 2% in grasslands. The wetlands had the highest number of convictions per land area, suggesting that despite being a smaller portion of illegal hunting, the impacts are densely concentrated.

The researchers also developed statistical prediction models to better understand patterns of illegal hunting in China. The results suggest that illegal hunting convictions were predicted to be lower for areas farther away from urban markets. In other words, less illegal hunting activity occurs if there aren’t any places nearby to sell the hunted animals. Illegal hunting convictions were also predicted to be higher in areas with forest cover. The presence of law enforcement in the area did not significantly influence the number of convictions. Geographically, the models predicted the highest concentration of illegal hunting convictions in eastern China. Crimes specific to endangered species were predicted to more likely take place in southern and southwestern areas of China.

The study also identified ecological traits that make certain species more vulnerable to hunting. Species with larger body masses, along with amphibians and bird species closer to major cities were more likely to be hunted. A limitation of this analysis is that it only considers animals that have already been illegally hunted and detected by authorities, which the researchers estimate represent only 10% of actual illegal hunting activity in China. They also built a prediction model to determine what other species may be at risk, finding 781 additional species likely to be hunted — 90 of which are currently listed as vulnerable or endangered.

For animal advocates, this research provides a high-level overview of a very complex industry. It highlights key trends and potential gaps outside of the legal system that animal advocates should consider. Focusing efforts in areas where animals are most at risk, like close to urban markets, should be top priority. While stopping all illegal hunting is not feasible, this research offers guidance on where advocates should place their efforts to reduce harm to animals and humans alike.