Pangolins, ancient creatures that have roamed the Earth for over 80 million years, face an unprecedented threat from human actions. Despite their long history, these unique mammals are now the most trafficked animals globally, with illegal trade reaching alarming levels. From 2010 to 2023, traffickers trafficked more than 136,000 pangolins in almost 400 trafficking cases. This shocking trend is mainly due to the overwhelming demand found in China—the largest market for trafficked pangolins.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has all eight species of pangolins listed as threatened. They all experience different levels of existential threat. These fur-covered mammals traverse across Asia and Africa, flaunting many distinct qualities. They’re protected by tough, armor-like plates all over their bodies, with five-toed, clawed feet, and long, worm-like tongues that can reach a length of 25 centimeters (10 inches). Their slow-moving nature aggravates their vulnerability to poaching, as they are easy targets for traffickers.
Tristan Dicks, a wildlife photographer, emphasizes the lack of awareness surrounding pangolins, stating, “A lot of people that come on safari for the first time have never heard of a pangolin.” He aims to use his powerful photographs to bring awareness to critical environmental issues. “So, if we can create photographs that people can connect with, that makes a huge difference,” he adds.
Margot Raggett, founder of Remembering Wildlife, has spent 17 years leading safari tours in the wild. In all that time, she has only seen 15 pangolins. “People have got to love something to want to protect it and to fear losing it,” she explains. Raggett recognizes that more understanding about these animals’ fate is desperately needed. People tell me that, ‘I’ve never even heard of [pangolins] until you told me you were doing a book on them,’ and in a way… that’s wonderful. And that’s evidence that we’re doing our job. We hope to educate the world about this cuddly, beautiful, dynamo of a creature that needs the world’s attention.
“Pangolins are incredibly secretive and nocturnal, making it hard to get decent photographs of them in the wild,” she notes. In addition, she draws attention to the issues with electrified fences in southern Africa. “In southern Africa, electrified fences are a huge threat to pangolins, given their defensive habit of curling into a ball when threatened,” Dr. Panaino explains. When they curl up, they protect themselves from falling—yet inadvertently open themselves to electric shock. “They walk on their hind legs, [so] the electrics make contact often with the belly, and then they curl into a ball and get constantly electrocuted,” she adds.
The pangolin’s physical oddities and reclusive habits certainly make this creature adorable, but serve to underscore its vulnerability. As Raggett pointed out, “We don’t even know how many pangolins there are.” This all-encompassing uncertainty only adds to the urgency of the conservation work that awaits us.
