![]() "While there is a demand for these animals, and someone out there willing to pay, people will find a way to get them."Ĭolombia, where law enforcement is weak in large parts of the country, has struggled to stop traffickers. "Just banning the animal trade is not working," Lozano said. Wallace Lozano sees captive breeding as a way of fighting the billion dollar illegal wildlife trade Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Research shows some consumers place higher value on animals taken from the wild rather than bred in captivity Image: Getty Images/AFP/A. It is the world's fourth biggest illegal international trade after narcotics, counterfeiting and human trafficking. Lozano believes captive breeding projects are an increasingly important way to fight animal trafficking around the world, an industry some estimates say is worth $19 billion (17 billion euros) each year. "We are helping authorities to fight animal trafficking by giving buyers an alternative to get absolutely legal, healthy and captive-bred frogs," Lozano said. His customers include private collectors in the United States, Holland and Indonesia who like to keep frogs at home, as well as organizations like German-based Frogs and Friends that are trying to set up captive breeding programs of their own. ![]() He can breed a few thousands frogs each year, selling them for between $30 (€25) and $500 (€411), depending on species and age. His company has government permits to breed and export seven types of endangered amphibians, including the black and yellow striped Lehmann's poison frog and the golden poison frog, coveted by collectors around the world. Lozano’s company focuses on species that are endangered through poaching Image: Manuel Rueda Thousands of Lehmann’s poison frog are believed to have been taken from Colombia’s pacific coast over the decades Image: Manuel Rueda In 2006 he founded Tesoros de Colombia (Treasures of Colombia), a project trying to prevent the extinction of species made vulnerable by poaching. Lozano, obsessed with animals since he was a little boy, studied wildlife management in the UK, before deciding to focus on conservation closer to home. "In Colombia we have species of frogs that have been taken from the wild in such large quantities that they've almost become extinct," he said. It's from this small farm near Bogota that Lozano is trying to undermine the wildlife traffickers plundering the country's forests. These terrariums provide homes for some of Colombia's most endangered frogs. Inside Ivan Lozano's secluded facility there are dozens of neatly stacked glass cases, glowing with ultraviolet light and filled with vegetation. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |