GBR Press: Internet trade driving rare salamander to extinction

[John]

The Independent (UK) - March 17th 2010: Internet trade driving rare salamander to extinction

Plight of Kaiser's spotted newt highlights new threat to wildlife
By Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor and Kevin Rawlinson

A rare salamander is being driven to the brink of extinction in the wild because of internet trading, conservationists say.
The little-known Kaiser's spotted newt, found only in Iran, is thought to be the first creature to face the threat of extinction from e-commerce – a growing threat to endangered wildlife which authorities are struggling to address. Because Neurergus kaiseri is very attractively coloured, and also rare, amphibian enthusiasts are willing to pay as much as £200 for one. Dealers can often only find people willing to pay such a price by advertising on the internet.
An investigation into the sale of Kaiser's spotted newts by the wildlife trade monitoring agency Traffic found 10 websites claiming to stock the species, including a Ukrainian company which said it had sold more than 200 wild-caught specimens in a year.
The demand has been such that the wild population, found only in four streams of Iran's Zagros Mountains, was reduced by 80 per cent between 2001 and 2005 alone, and is now classed as critically endangered. It is estimated that fewer than 1,000 mature individuals remain.
Conservationists want all international trade in wild-caught Kaiser's spotted newts made illegal. A proposal to ban such trade has been put forward by Iran at the conference of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), in Doha in the Arabian gulf.

Continued in Full Article: Internet trade driving rare salamander to extinction - Nature, Environment - The Independent

 

[John]

Rather exaggerated prices quoted in that article, and the article makes "Traffic" seem over zealous, and that always hurts an organization in the eyes of anyone who knows the facts. However, sensationalism sells papers and web site hits. I've posted a comment on the article to give more than that slanted assessment. I've also posted a similar comment on the Zoological Society of London's blog article about the Independent piece: EDGE Blog » Popular newt struggles to survive

 

[michael]

I think I'm the "Some claim their salamanders were captive bred in 2008" listed in the one article. At least some of the info is more up to date. When the w.c. N. kaiseri came to the U.S. through big wholesalers they were passed as c.b. by USFW. They were all adults. fish and wildlife should have picked up on their mistake. Many brokers listed animals for sale that they did not have. It seems that the statistics on the w.c. N. kaiseri sold in the U.S. were skewed because they were based on who was listing them not who actually had them for sale.

When I imported a couple small lots of N. kaiseri I imported c.b. sub adults, juveniles, and larvae. The evidence supporting CITESI listing seems to be inaccurate and slanted toward the result the presenters want. That isn't how good science works.

 

[John]

The Independent removed my comment from their article page.

 

[John]

Here's my comment (thank you Google cache):

Hello, I’m Dr. John Clare from Caudata.org, a web site dedicated to the captive care and breeding of newts and salamanders. Captive breeding accounts on our web site were referenced in Iran’s current proposal to list Neurergus kaiseri (Kaiser's Spotted Newt or Luristan Newt) as CITES Appendix I.

Firstly, regarding the prices, it is true that several years ago these newts could fetch such high prices, but it's rare to see them for sale now for much over USD $125, which is still exorbitant in my opinion. However, the simple truth is that captive bred Kaiser's Spotted Newts are becoming more and more common. A straightforward method to discern wild caught newts from captive bred is the age (or size, since the two traits are related in amphibians like newts). Wild caught newts and salamanders are invariably adults and adult size. This is because the animals are collected during breeding congress, since it is easiest to harvest them when they are all together in a small body of water. Captive bred newts and salamanders are invariably offered as small juveniles. The difference is night and day.

In my opinion, the protective listing of this species was needed over a decade ago, and now, given the precarious situation in which this species finds itself, it’s hard not to be pessimistic about its survival. With such low numbers left in the wild, yet the great success that private individuals around the world and institutions like Sedgwick County Zoo (USA) have had in breeding this species, listing the species in CITES Appendix I at this point would seem to be something of a “Catch 22″. The listing will obviously help to reduce wild collection but it will also negate any captive breeding efforts carried out by private individuals, limiting breeding of the species to institutions like zoos and aquariums. Sadly, these institutions must pick and choose the animals that they maintain, and in my considerable experience, newts rarely, if ever, make it into institutional collections due to their poor visibility as display animals and their specialist maintenance requirements. There is also very little expertise in institutions like zoos when it comes to newts and salamanders, and virtually no zoos have ever bred a species of tailed-amphibian.

So while I’m very much in favour of listing the species in CITES Appendix I, there is a large shortfall in the required expertise and newt-friendly grants/funding to foster captive breeding and reintroduction efforts.

 

[John]

Actually, from my computer it looks like they've removed the ability to comment on the article as well as removing my comment. Pretty pathetic behaviour by them, considering we were referenced by the Iranians in their CITES proposal. At least it's still on the ZSL/EDGE blog.

 

[tmarmoratus]

Yeah, that's pretty messed up, but it doesn't surprise me. Why allow a counterargument that makes them appear ignorant?

 

[Ben Krysa]

I find it very sad that the efforts of people captive breeding N.kaiseri seem to be resented by some people. John, your point about a "catch 22" situation also points out that , sadly much of hobbyist's effort may be in vain. I know of only one institution in Canada that has bred newts in captivity and I am also saddened by the fact that these amazing creatures seem to be largely overlooked.
I strongly feel that your comment was very relevant to the topic and the fact that it was removed strikes me as ignorant. There were many relevant facts missing from the original article that your comment filled in nicely.

I'm sure everyone can agree that it would be great to one day see Kaiser's newt populations make a come back.