Counter Wildlife Trafficking Newsletter
February 2022
Illegal wildlife trade in February 2022
In Focus
Wildlife crime & camera trapping training | The Morung Express
From 19th-21st February, 2022, WCS-India trained 32 Forest Guards and Foresters from Intanki National Park, Nagaland on ‘Wildlife Crime Prevention, Detection and Investigation’. Topics covered included ‘Offenses under Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972’, ‘Search and Seizure Procedure’, ‘Legal Documentation’ and ‘Identification of Species’.
Eight staff members were also given a thorough training on camera trap set-up and GPS handling.
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News scan (February 1 to 28, 2022)
Big Cats
Karnataka Forest Department apprehends six in tiger poaching case at Nagarhole Tiger Reserve | MSN
The Karnataka Forest Department has apprehended six people, who were trying to sell the skin, paws and claws of a tiger in the buffer zone of the Nagarhole Tiger Reserve.
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Tigerskin, parts recovered in WCCB-led operation | The Shillong Times
A joint operation led by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) in Guwahati led to the recovery of skin of a full-grown royal Bengal tiger and multiple tiger body parts from a petrol depot near the national highway at Banderdewa in Assam
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More on big cats
11 members of gang held in leopard skin trade case | The Times of India
Seven held for possession of leopard skin in Thane district | The Print
Trapped in cable snare at Mardol, leopard dies | The Times of India
Five held for killing a leopard, five others nabbed for smuggling wildlife in Chhattisgarh | Hindustan Times
Leopard found dead in Madhya Pradesh, claws & whiskers removed | The Times of India
Leopard hide seized in Solan | The Tribune
Two poachers held for trapping leopard, stabbing it to death | The Times of India
Birds
Bengaluru police bust online racket in the sale of parakeet | The Hindu
The Varthur police arrested two persons in connection with an inter-state online racket in Alexandrine parakeet chicks and rescued 26 chicks.
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More on birds
Man held for poaching birds near Tindivanam | The Hindu
Forest Dept finds 42 carcasses of poached migratory birds, rescues 11 parakeet chicks, near Villianur | The Hindu
Elephants
Elephant electrocuted in Saharanpur's Shivalik forest | ANI
An elephant died after getting in contact with the 11,000 high tension line in the Mohand Range of Saharanpur's Shivalik Forest Division.
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More on Elephants
Odisha STF arrests wildlife criminal, seizes elephant tusks | The Statesman
Exotic
Four arrested for smuggling macaws | The Telegraph
Acting on a tip-off, the Border Security Force (BSF) arrested four persons and recovered 15 macaws in Cooch Behar. The exotic birds had been smuggled from Bangladesh to India.
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Marine
Coast Guard seize 30 live sea cucumbers | Times of India
In a swiftly coordinated sea-air operation undertaken by Indian Coast Guard District Headquarters (Kerala & Mahe) and Coast Guard Headquarters (Kavaratti), four Tamil Nadu natives and three from Lakshadweep were apprehended for poaching sea cucumber.
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Pangolin
Chinese pangolin rescued in Barpeta | Northeast Now
A live Chinese pangolin was rescued by a wildlife protection team and forest officials near Beki River in Barpeta along the national highway
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More on pangolin
Leopard claws, pangolin scales seized in Bastar | Times of India
Reptiles
One held for keeping sand boa | Times of India
Satara forest department raided a home at Vadi village in Khatav tehsil, where one Indian sand boa was found. One man has been nabbed by the forest department and a forest crime has been registered against him under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
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Tortoise and Freshwater Turtles
318 Indian softshell turtles recovered in Lucknow, one held | Hindustan Times
The forest department on Monday rescued 318 Indian softshell turtles, an endangered species, from Mohan Road and arrested one smuggler in this connection while others managed to flee.
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More on tortoise and freshwater turtles
Two wildlife smugglers held in UP’s Kanpur | Hindustan Times
Carcasses of five green sea turtles found near Kudankulam | DT Next
One arrested for smuggling Indian star tortoises | India Today
Eight smugglers were arrested with 935 turtles including five women, RPF raids Kamakhya Express | Muzaffarpur Now
Nashik forest dept seizes 10 turtles, four hedgehogs, two frogs & six birds; two held | Times of India
Rhino
Six held for illegally smuggling rhino horns | Northeast Today
The Assam Police have successfully apprehended six people from the Biswanath district of Assam in a major operation against illegal smuggling of rhino horns.
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Ungulates
Forestmen seize four-kilogram flesh of deer, three turtles in Khapa | The Live Nagpur
Alertness shown by the volunteers of Wildlife Welfare Society and Vanya Pashu Pakshi Samrakshan Samajik Sastha led to the seizure of four kilograms of spotted deer and three turtles in the category of Schedule I of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 at Khapa.
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More on ungulates
Man held with deer antlers worth in Thane | The Print
Four poachers arrested for killing Sambhar Deer: Police | Greater Kashmir
Red Sandalwood
195 logs of red sanders slated to be shipped to Taiwan seized in Bengaluru | The Hindu
Customs officials at the Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Whitefield seized 4.8 tonnes of red sanders, concealed among furniture in 65 plywood boxes
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More on red sanders
Car with red sanders crashes into house in Chittoor district, two injured | Times of India
Man Tries To Smuggle Red Sandalwood In 'Pushpa' Style; Gets Arrested | Republic World
Two red sanders smugglers held during a combing operation | The New Indian Express
Other
Alipurduar: Trinamul leader arrested for ‘timber smuggling’ | Telegraph India
Odisha Police recovers 3.5 kgs of pangolin scales in Mayurbhanj | ANI News
Wild bear poaching gang arrested in Telangana | The Times of India
बड़ी सफलता: बीएसएफ ने बांग्लादेश सीमा पर दुर्लभ प्रजाति के 20 काकटेल तोता समेत 80 हरे तोते को तस्करी से बचाया | Dainik Jagran
दबिश: जंगली सुअर का शिकार मामले में और दो आरोपी गिरफ्तार | Bhaskar Hindi
जंगली सूअर के मांस की तस्करी, 3 तस्कर गिरफ्तार | Janta Se Rishta
Infographics:
Illegal Wildlife Trade in February 2022 by CWT team
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