Authorities record 500 cases of illegal hunting, trade of wild animals in 2018

AMMAN — Authorities recorded 500 cases involving poaching and the illegal possession and trade of wild animals from January to early December of this year, according to the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN).

Head of RSCN’s law enforcement section, Abdul Razzaq Hmoud, said that violators found in possession of wild animals were issued tickets and fines. However, those who were below the legal age simply had their animals seized.

Greek tortoises constituted the majority of the seized and confiscated animals, according to Hmoud, who said that the RSCN and its partners found 500 Greek tortoises in a single smuggling case.

“Customs department’s officers at one of the country’s border crossing contacted the society after uncovering an attempt to smuggle 500 Greek tortoises into the Kingdom,” Hmoud told The Jordan Times. The total number of seized and confiscated tortoises stood at 700 this year.

The Greek or common tortoise is an indigenous species to Jordan and the Mediterranean region at large. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Endangered Species categorised the tortoise as “vulnerable” in 1996.

“Also among the seized and confiscated animals and birds, many of which are globally endangered, were 21 falcons, 3 wolves, 4 monkeys, more than 400 birds and around 26 pieces of elephant tusks and tusk ornaments,” Hmoud said.

The RSCN’s efforts to protect the country’s wildlife are made possible with support from the Jordan Customs Department, local communities, the Royal Rangers and the security apparatus in general, Hmoud underlined.

Hmoud added that the RSCN and the Royal Rangers also seized and confiscated two lion cubs late last week, noting that the operation to retrieve the smuggled cubs, intended for sale on the Internet, took a week of work and coordinated efforts.

Established in 1966 as an independent nonprofit organisation and mandated in 1973 by the government to regulate the hunting and protection of the Kingdom’s wildlife, the society also issued and renewed around 4,000 hunting licences this year.