Pangolin Welfare: The World's Most Trafficked Mammal

Pangolins are the most trafficked mammal on Earth, seized in their tens of thousands annually. Their welfare needs during trafficking and in captivity are poorly understood but clearly acute.

Key Facts

Eight pangolin species exist across Africa and Asia; all are listed as Threatened or Critically Endangered.
An estimated 100,000-200,000 pangolins are trafficked annually, primarily for scales used in traditional medicine.
Pangolin scales are made of keratin — the same material as human fingernails — with no proven medicinal properties.
Pangolins are highly specialized feeders: they eat only ants and termites using a sticky tongue up to 40cm long.
Captive pangolins have extremely high mortality rates because replicating their specialized diet is extremely difficult.
When threatened, pangolins roll into a tight ball; this defense makes them easy to collect and carry.
CITES Appendix I listing provides the highest level of international trade protection, adopted in 2016.

Welfare Considerations

Pangolin welfare in trafficking and captivity is characterized by suffering at every stage. Capture, transport, and holding conditions in trafficking networks impose extreme stress on solitary, fossorial animals adapted to specific forest habitats. Their defensive ball-rolling makes them easy to bag and stack — a posture maintained under duress for hours or days. Captive pangolins in wildlife markets and traditional medicine operations are held in barren, crowded conditions without access to their specialized food. Even in rescue centers, replicating the highly specific ant and termite diet required for pangolin survival is technically challenging; many rescued individuals die within days or weeks. The welfare intervention with the greatest impact is demand reduction for pangolin scales in traditional medicine markets, combined with strengthened enforcement of trafficking networks.

What You Can Do

Support anti-trafficking organizations and demand reduction campaigns in traditional medicine markets.
Never purchase products containing pangolin scales or meat.
Donate to pangolin conservation organizations in range countries in Africa and Asia.
Support CITES enforcement and monitoring to detect and disrupt pangolin trafficking networks.
Engage with traditional medicine practitioners and communities on evidence-based alternatives to pangolin derivatives.