International Wildlife Trade Conference Secures Essential Protections for Imperiled Species aalberg Wed, 12/17/2025 - 13:33 December 17, 2025 Samarkand, Uzbekistan—The international wildlife trade is a multibillion-dollar industry that impacts hundreds of millions of plants and animals. It is often fueled by unsustainable demand for imperiled species and their body parts for the luxury food market, hunting trophies, souvenirs, and décor, as well as live animals for the exotic pet trade. To help protect wild species threatened by trade, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) attended the 20th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP20) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from November 24 to December 5. CITES is an agreement between nations designed to regulate international trade in wild animals and plants to prevent international commerce from threatening species’ survival. It celebrated its 50th anniversary at the conference, which marked impressive gains for imperiled wildlife. More than 150 governments from around the world largely voted to implement, defend, and strengthen international trade protections for millions of animals. The following species—including several AWI campaigned for directly—are among those receiving new or increased protections at CITES CoP20:Chilean Rose TarantulaEach year, millions of arachnids are purchased as pets, two-thirds of which are taken from the wild. The Chilean rose tarantula is one of the most commonly sold tarantula species, particularly in the United States. AWI strongly supported a proposal to list the Chilean rose tarantula and 14 similar-looking species on Appendix II, which restricts commercial trade. We also hosted a well-attended side event with the proponent governments of Bolivia, Argentina, and Panama, which discussed the nature of the tarantula trade, its impacts on wild populations, and the need for greater CITES regulation.While the original tarantula listing proposal was not adopted in committee, the proponents revised it for consideration in the plenary session, with the “lookalike” species removed. With this change, the proposal was adopted by consensus, affording the Chilean rose tarantula increased protection from the pet trade. AWI will continue to work with tarantula experts and range states (those whose territory is within the natural range of distribution of a species) to support more proposals for tarantula protection at future CITES meetings.Dorcas GazelleDorcas gazelles were once the most widely distributed African gazelle. Today, fewer than 10,000 remain, due to overhunting for their horns and skin, habitat loss, and live collection for the pet trade. At CoP20, parties supported a request to help the species, submitted by range states, agreeing by consensus to add the species to Appendix II. Dorcas gazelles will now be protected by international trade regulations governing their use as pets and as trophies.Galapagos Marine and Land IguanasThese marine and land iguanas are found only on the Galapagos Islands. They have received international trade protections under a CITES Appendix II listing since 1975. However, increased concerns about the trafficking of illegally caught wild iguanas, in addition to the impacts of habitat degradation, climate change, pollution, and predation by feral dogs and cats, led CITES member states to adopt, by consensus, a proposal by Ecuador to upgrade the iguanas to Appendix I. This affords them the strongest protection possible under CITES—a ban on international commercial trade.Ethiopian Mountain Adder and Bale Mountains AdderTwo viper species threatened by the pet trade are the Ethiopian mountain adder and the Bale Mountains adder, both found only in Ethiopia. They were proposed for uplisting from Appendix II to Appendix I due to ongoing population declines resulting from deforestation, poaching, and smuggling—primarily driven by demand for them as exotic pets in Europe and the United States. Both vipers were successfully uplisted to Appendix I by consensus.Ruppell’s Vulture and White-Backed VultureSimilarly, two species of African vultures—the Ruppell’s vulture and the white-backed vulture—were uplisted from Appendix II to Appendix I to prohibit international commercial trade in their parts and products. Populations of these vultures have declined dramatically, due to reduced food abundance, deliberate poisoning by poachers (because vulture presence often reveals the site of an illegally hunted animal), and international trade—including use of their body parts in traditional medicines, for spiritual use, and as wild meat. Parties agreed by consensus that the vultures’ declining status warranted full protection from commercial trade.Sharks and RaysIn a significant win for aquatic animals, several species of sharks and rays—some of the world’s most widely trafficked animals—were accorded new protections during the meeting. These animals are targeted for their fins and meat. AWI has worked for years to raise awareness of the brutal shark fin trade. The oceanic whitetip shark, whale shark, and all species of manta ray were uplisted to Appendix I, providing them increased protection, while the school shark and entire genera of both smooth-hound and gulper sharks were added to Appendix II, establishing restrictions on their trade.Palearctic Water Frogs and Anguillid EelsCITES is increasingly addressing the growing demand for wildlife for human consumption, especially as luxury foods on the international market. Frogs’ legs and juvenile (aka “glass”) eels (often labeled “unagi,” a common ingredient in sushi) are consumed across the globe. Alongside other factors, culinary demand for these animals is so high that it threatens their survival in the wild. Unfortunately, despite strong scientific evidence demonstrating this threat, intense lobbying by Japan defeated a proposal by the European Union to list anguillid eels under CITES Appendix II. The palearctic water frogs, however, did receive a favorable vote, and were successfully added to Appendix II.HornbillsHornbills are subtropical and tropical birds easily recognizable by their distinctive bills. However, this is the very reason they are under threat: Their bills are widely traded as ornaments and trophies. Female hornbills inhabit natural tree cavities when incubating their eggs, during which time they rely entirely on the male to deliver food. Because of this, if a male hornbill is captured or killed during egg incubation, the adult female and developing chicks may also die. While many species of hornbills have had longstanding protections under CITES, African hornbills were exempt. Several African countries submitted a proposal to list these birds under Appendix II, which was approved by consensus. An important focus for AWI at CoP20 was the growing international trade in fish maw (swim bladders), which are highly sought after in Asian markets as a luxury food and traditional medicine—but also increasingly used as source of collagen in cosmetics. There were no listing proposals on the agenda to protect species affected by the maw trade at this meeting, but AWI hosted a well-attended side event to discuss the nature of the trade, its catastrophic impact on target fish species, and the devastating consequences for already endangered sharks and rays, marine mammals, and marine turtles that drown in fishing nets set for species targeted for their maw. AWI is leading a coalition of NGOs and experts to develop a global strategy to address this trade, including at future CITES meetings.AWI is excited by the outcomes of CoP20, which demonstrate that CITES remains effective even as it faces significant budget challenges and a demanding workload. The large number of species that received protections by consensus shows the deep commitment of most CITES member states to science-based conservation, and the mission of CITES to prevent overexploitation from international trade. We were also pleased by the progress on a number of technical issues we work on that will improve implementation and enforcement of the treaty, including on issues related to the humane transport of live animals.We look forward to continuing to participate in future CITES meetings and working with our international partners, including colleagues at the Species Survival Network who led advocacy efforts on some of these proposals, to secure important protections for threatened and endangered animals and ensure the effective functioning of this vital treaty. Media Contact Information Kim Meneo, Animal Welfare Institutekim@awionline.org, (202) 446-2116 The Animal Welfare Institute (awionline.org) is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to alleviating animal suffering caused by people. We seek to improve the welfare of animals everywhere: in agriculture, in commerce, in our homes and communities, in research, and in the wild. 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