Alarming rates of wildlife trafficking have been discovered in the Sulu-Celebes Sea within Southeast Asia, amounting to over 120,000 tonnes of wildlife, parts and plants seized from illegal trade. That’s equivalent to 6,000 shipping containers at max load. Over 25,000 live animals are included in these seizures.

25 May 2023, Manila: A wide range and concerning volume of wildlife are being trafficked through the region⁽¹⁾, and a new report calls for urgent action in this part of Southeast Asia shared by Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.  

The study reported over 25,000 live animals and over 120,000 tonnes of wildlife, parts and plants seized from illegal trade in this area between June 2003 and September 2021. The illicit trade targeted hundreds of species, from forest dwelling pangolins, freshwater turtles and elephants to marine life such as turtles, seahorses, sharks and rays.

The authors of Illegal Wildlife Trade: Baseline for Monitoring and Law Enforcement in the Sulu-Celebes Seas found that the two seas are used more as a conduit to smuggle wildlife between Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, rather than as a transit pathway to other destinations.