Pig-nosed turtle is too cute for its own good, says new report

The global illegal animal trade is taking its toll on vulnerable species, among them a small and distinctive reptile you might have seen featured in news stories for being smuggled aboard airplanes in people’s trousers. According to a newly released report by Traffic, an international watchdog group that monitors the wildlife trade, the rare pig-nosed turtle is under dire threat from exotic pet enthusiasts.
According to Serene Chng, programme officer at Traffic’s Kuala Lumpur office, the reptile is in high demand from pet traders - including online traders - in Europe, the United States and Asia. It can be found only regionally in Australia and Papua and is categorized as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The pig-nosed turtle - named for its porcine snout – is especially appealing to pet traders because of its “uniqueness”, explains Chng: “They are the only surviving species of the family they are in. They come from a restricted range, so it is very exotic to own [them]. And the hatchlings are very attractive and very cute.” The species can grow up to 50 lbs and two feet in length over the course of its 40-year lifespan.

The new report on the state of the species finds that within a 10-year period (2003-2013), 80,000 pig-nosed turtles were confiscated in some 30 seizures, including a massive bust of 8,368 turtles in an array of suitcases in Papua and Jakarta, Indonesia, last January. “Chances are there is a lot more illegal trade happening that isn’t being reported or caught,” Chng says.
The illegal animal trade constitutes an estimated $10bn global industry, according to the Humane Society. Numbers on the illicit exotic pet trade are hard to come by, but Peter Paul van Dijk, director of Conservation International’s turtle conservation program, speculates that it’s roughly $1bn annually - and growing. And although turtles have been a mainstay of illegal trade for at least 20 years, the turtle trade is “quietly growing in the US,” according to van Dijk. “There is greater demand and an increased opportunity to buy turtles in pet stores”, he says.
China has one of the biggest thirsts on the globe for pet turtles, says Ross Kiester, Chief Scientist at the Turtle Conservancy. “The pet trade is definitely increasing and you see that as the Asian countries become more wealthy. 20 years ago in China, no one could afford turtles as a pet - and now everyone can.”
According to Chng, millions of turtles and tortoises are being shuttled around the globe annually for the pet trade. She says there’s an accelerating trend of exporting turtles by packing them into checked luggage on international passenger airlines. Smuggled animals are usually babies because of their smaller, more transportable size. Nearly 20% of turtles die while being smuggled.
According to the report, Papuan villagers are plucking upwards of 2m pig-nosed turtle eggs from their riverside nests annually. Because hatchlings tend to bring more money than the turtle eggs, some Papuan collectors and “immigrant traders” incubate [the turtles] in hatcheries. Hatchlings can sell on the international market for $39-$56 each.
This wasn’t always the case. Papuans once hunted the eggs solely for food, in numbers that were more sustainable. But the high market prices have made the turtle much more valuable as a commodity than a food source. Furthermore, turtle traders are enticing Papuan communities with expensive turtle-hunting gear, like motorboats.
The pig-nosed are one of a number of turtles that are in danger because of their exotic attributes. Other sought-after species include the Indian star tortoise, the black spotted turtle, the radiated tortoise and the ploughshare tortoise.
The vast, illegal trade in wildlife operates for a number of reasons. It begins with a basic lack of oversight and regulation, “meaning no one is watching it or there is corruption going on or papers are being forged”, Chng explains. Some animals, such as the pig-nosed turtle, aren’t supposed to be traded if they are collected from the wild. But often, a trader will say that an animal is “captive bred”, meaning its parents were born in captivity as well. The problem is that the traders sometimes lie.
So what’s a conscientious consumer to do? “Ask for permits,” Chng says. “If it’s legally traded, the pet shop should have permits for the import of the species.”
Still, even if proper documentation is provided, it doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences. “For every turtle that they buy at the pet shop,” Chng says, “there are many dead turtles along the way.”
To avoid the extinction of the species, Chris Shepherd, regional director of Traffic in Southeast Asia, is calling for “urgent enforcement action in Papua”. Governments must increase the number of inspectors along the international points of trade chain in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, mainland China and Hong Kong, he says. Shepherd also advocates for international public awareness campaigns and “efforts to address socio-economic issues that drive the illegal trade in this distinctive but imperiled species”.
Christina Russo is a freelance reporter and public radio producer covering animals and wildlife.