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The World Wildlife Fund has listed the great white shark among the 10 species most likely to become extinct due to international trade

The WWF/Adena has published its "most wanted" list of species of animals and trees in danger of extinction to prepare for the 13th Conference of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Representatives from more than 160 countries will review whether current wildlife protection measures are adequate.

1-10-2004

Many of these species were added to the most wanted list a decade ago and are still there. According to WWF/Adena, this shows that "little progress has been made in the struggle against illegal trade and other such threats". Other species, including the white tiger and the ramin, an Asian hardwood, have had the sad honour of being added to the list because of global market demand.

The director of the WWF/Adena's Global Species Programme, Dr Susan Lieberman, pointed out that there are more obscure species that also suffer from unregulated trade at the same rate as the better-known endangered species like the tiger, the great white shark and the Asian elephant.

One of these lesser-known species is the humphead wrasse , a coral reef fish which is slow to reproduce and is threatened by the growing demand in the Asian diet. The wrasse is caught and traded live to be displayed in restaurant tanks for diners to select from. The demand is such that this fish can fetch 100 euros a kilo. The ramin also enters into the category of obscure species. This tropical hardwood from Indonesia and Malaysia is used to make mass-produced mouldings, doors, picture frames and even pool cues. Illegal logging not only puts this species at risk, but also threatens the endangered tigers, orang-utans and other swamp forest dwellers.

Another endangered tree is the Asian yew, harvested for its bark, which contains a chemical used in the cancer medication Taxol. The most wanted list also includes the tiger, whose numbers have been reduced by an estimated 95 percent - with perhaps fewer than 5,000 left in the wild. Among their biggest threats are poaching for tiger parts for use in traditional Chinese medicines.

The biggest threat to the extremely rare Irrawaddy dolphin is entanglement in fishing nets and injury from explosives used for dynamite fishing. There is also demand for the dolphin for display in zoos and aquariums, but the species is so endangered that even limited trade is detrimental to its survival. High demand for unique pets is also taking a serious toll on the pig-nosed turtle - a giant freshwater turtle found in Papua New Guinea - and the yellow-crested cockatoo - an exotic-looking parrot whose entire population has been reduced to fewer than 10,000. Already listed on CITES as requiring carefully regulated trade, Indonesia has proposed banning all international commercial trade because the cockatoo is so threatened.

Marking the CITES meeting in Thailand, WWF/Adena warned that "overexploitation and uncontrolled trade are ravaging Asia's forests, rivers and seas." In pushing for greater protection, the WWF has joined forces with another NGO, TRAFFIC, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to find a common mechanism for the first time for international wildlife trade management and control throughout the region.