GS PAPER II: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Context: Researchers sequenced 624 pangolin scales, categorising the species

Need:

• Pangolins, despite being listed in Schedule I of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 continue to be the world’s most trafficked mammal.
• The primary demand for its scales in the making of traditional East Asian medicines has led to an estimated illegal trade worth $2.5 billion every year.
• To enforce the appropriate national and international laws and to track the decline of the species, researchers of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kolkata, have now developed tools to tell apart the scales of Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) and Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla).
• Rampant poaching is pushing the endangered species towards extinction. Between 2000 and 2019, an estimate of about 8,95,000 pangolins was trafficked globally, which mainly involved Asian and African pangolins.

Pangolins in India

• Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) and the Chinese Pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) are found in India.
• Indian Pangolin is a large anteater covered by 11-13 rows of scales on the back.
• A terminal scale is also present on the lower side of the tail of the Indian Pangolin, which is absent in the Chinese Pangolin.

Habitat

Indian Pangolin

• Widely distributed in India, except the arid region, high Himalayas and the North-East. The species is also found in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Chinese Pangolin

• Found in the Himalayan foothills in Eastern Nepal, Bhutan, Northern India, North-East Bangladesh and through Southern China.

Threats to Pangolins in India:

Hunting and poaching for use as a protein source and traditional medicine and international trade for its meat and scales in East and South East Asian countries, particularly China and Vietnam.

Protection Status

IUCN Red List

• Indian Pangolin: Endangered
• Chinese Pangolin: Critically Endangered
• Both these species are listed under Schedule I, Part I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/wildlife-forensics-helps-cause-of-pangolins/article34515874.ece