Chimpanzees and gorillas among 10 most illegally traded species: CITES

Over 6,000 African primates traded internationally in over 50 countries

Highly endangered species of primates like chimpanzees and gorillas are among the 10-most traded species of animals and their body parts were used as charms, says a report by global conservation organisation, CITES.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a global organisation that regulates international trade in wildlife, has warned that trading in endangered African primates like chimpanzees and gorillas is very high, posing a serious threat to their existence.

According to a report by CITES, more than 6,000 African primates were traded internationally in over 50 countries between 2000 and 2023 and that the endangered chimpanzees and critically endangered western gorillas were among the 10 most-traded species according to data from. 

It says that African primates were traded as trophies for scientific research and kept in zoos. Hunting monkeys and apes for food and body parts was used in charms and rituals in several parts of Africa, while infants and juveniles were captured live for the exotic pet trade, it says. 

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A report by Pan African Sanctuary Alliance, a not-for-profit organisation based in the United States, has captured the scale of the trade, geographic hotspots and species targeted.

“The intention is for this report to serve as both a diagnostic tool and a call to action,” says wildlife crime specialist Monique Sosnowski. 

It adds that although the report captures international trade in primates from Africa, there is no account for domestic trade driven by food and other traditional uses. The report relies on seizure data, constituting a fraction of the actual trade, it says. 

The statement adds that trophy hunting of the chacma baboon breed of monkeys dominated the legal trade across the borders, as recorded by CITES. Chimpanzees and gorillas were primarily traded for scientific research and zoo transfers, it says. 

It adds that in a case study on chimpanzee trade, the report presents 418 trade transactions recorded by CITES, of which 138 involved live individuals, while over 182 records indicated that chimpanzees were wild-sourced. 

Gabon exported the largest number of chimps, followed by Uganda, while Germany ranked among the first importers, followed by the U.S. and Denmark. The report says that chimpanzees were traded commercially, despite a ban on the international commercial trade. 

The statement adds that Iris Ho, head of campaigns and policy at the Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA), says that the analysis revealed a few concerning trade instances that require further examination to confirm they are not illegal. 

It adds that among these exports was a bonobo from Iraq to the United Arab Emirates in 2023 and as per the CITES record, the individual was declared “captive born.” However, the report casts doubt on this as Iraq never imported a bonobo and there are no known breeding facilities for the endangered ape in the country. In 2024, the bonobo was reexported to the Vantara Zoo in India, as per PASA. 

The statement adds that the discrepancies may not indicate illegal trafficking. 

Ofir Dori, Founding Director, Eagle Network, another NGO specialising in wildlife investigations and law enforcement, says that the report findings indicated that the legal trade in great apes is prevalent and was increasing. 

“Traders are using loopholes of the CITES Convention to have mass exports of great apes and we see that as the new danger,” says Dori. 

The statement adds that in addition to the legal trade data from CITES, the report also analysed data from 183 seizure incidents involving African primates between 2020 and 2023. Chimpanzees were the most intercepted primates and accounted for 37 pc of all seizures, followed by mandrills, which combined accounted for nearly half of all seizures, it says. 

It adds that as per Iris Ho, the primate trafficking is driven by the demand for exotic pet, mostly from outside Africa. Countries in Asia, the Middle East and Europe, and US drive the demand. 

The statement adds that the impact of the removal of great apes from the wild is felt beyond individual animals. As seed dispersers, the apes play a vital role in regenerating forests. Since most apes live in complex hierarchical societies, the killing of even one individual can disrupt the whole troop. Apes are long-lived mammals that produce just one offspring every four to six years, so the numbers do not bounce back easily. 

It adds that at the recently concluded CITES summit in Uzbekistan, parties decided to re-establish the Great Apes Enforcement Task Force, an international coordination network to strengthen the law enforcement against trafficking of gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans.