The cheetah is well known for being the fastest land mammal on the planet, reaching speeds of 110 km/h. Unfortunately, some of these felines will never be able to run at that speed in the wild. Captured as babies and sold online, they become pets. This terrible fate is the subject of a new report by TRAFFIC.
Selling cheetahs: the important role of social networks
Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) are in an extremely delicate situation, they are exposed to climate change, conflicts with people and the destruction of their natural environment. They have access to only 9% of their historical range and only 6,500 adults live in the wild.
Under pressure, the species was listed as “Vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List. And under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), trade in wild cheetahs is prohibited, except for annual quotas for trophy hunting.
However, these measures do not prevent the sale of young cheetahs on the Internet. TRAFFIC’s online survey tracked sellers and buyers. In just six months, the organization identified 222 URLs (“website” addresses) associated with the cheetah trade. 83 were suspected of being linked to private owners, and 97 others reflected the user’s firm intention to sell live cheetahs.
“70% of all URLs were found on social media platforms. 26% of the links were found on e-commerce platforms and dedicated websites, while others were discovered in online forums or newspaper articles“, TRAFFIC details in a press release.
Read alsoSomaliland, the center of the baby cheetah trade
A business widely established in Asia
Investigators went through the ads to better understand how the sellers worked. They try to remain anonymous, especially by hiding behind several profiles. Some previously identified have even changed the security and privacy settings of their online profile so that it is no longer public. Traffickers are often careful to avoid expressions that could be incriminating, sometimes just posting a photo of the animal in question without any text.
Live cheetah trade URLs were located for 68% in Asia, mainly in West Asia (66%), Saudi Arabia (28%), Kuwait (25%), United Arab Emirates (10%) and Yemen (2%) ). The United States was 15%, Africa 11% and Europe just 1%.
The Internet – and especially social networks – is a privileged area where buyers can show off their acquisition. The United Arab Emirates (32%), Saudi Arabia (25%), Kuwait (9%), South Africa (6%) and the United States (6%) are the countries most commonly seen with a cheetah.
Orange: areas where URLs indicating intent to trade in live cheetahs were found. In blue: the five countries with the best URLs that show the ownership of live cheetahs as pets. Credit: TRAFFIC
Official data that does not match URLs
CITES data and URL locations recorded during investigations did not always match. For example, Saudi Arabia has reported no imports of cheetahs since 2006, Kuwait has reported two imports in the same year, and Yemen has reported no exports or imports of live cheetahs since 1975. Social media depictions of these animals in these countries therefore reflect either illegal imports or unregulated births.
At the end of its report, the organization asks relevant government agencies to investigate suspicious profiles, conduct investigations on other platforms and try to identify animals visible online. He also recommends exploring possible cheetah breeding facilities in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.