Lahore man throws rare pangolin into rising floodwaters

Conservationists warned global population could decline 50% in next two decades

A rare Indian pangolin, one of Pakistan’s most endangered species, was spotted in Lahore before being hurled into floodwaters by a man who later shared the act on social media.

The Punjab Wildlife Department traced the suspect to Qila Ahmadabad in Narowal district and arrested him. A case has been registered under the relevant wildlife protection laws.

Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb condemned the incident, warning that cruelty against wildlife would be met with strict punishment.

Man arrested for tossing rare pangolin into floodwaters, posting the act online.

“Legal proceedings are being completed on an urgent basis,” she said.

The Indian pangolin, also known as the thick-tailed pangolin or scaly anteater, plays a vital ecological role by consuming up to 70 million insects annually, acting as a natural pest controller and improving soil quality. It is the only mammal covered in keratin scales and is among the most trafficked animals globally due to high demand for its meat and scales.

The pangolin has disappeared from more than 80% of its historic range in the Pothohar region, a region bordered by the Jhelum, and is classified as 'endangered' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. Conservationists warn its global population could decline by 50% in the next two decades.

Read: Multan braces for high flood waves from Chenab, Ravi

According to WWF-Pakistan, the Indian pangolin is protected by both federal and Sindh wildlife laws. Despite protection and inclusion in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 2016, the species remains under severe threat. Poaching for traditional medicine markets in Southeast Asia and China, along with habitat destruction from urbanisation and deforestation, has worsened its plight. Pakistan has also become a transit route for illegal pangolin trafficking.

Devastating floods in Pakistan

Torrential monsoon rains and surging rivers have unleashed widespread flooding across the country, leaving 881 people dead, over 1,000 injured and around a million displaced, according to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

“The crisis deepened after India released large volumes of water into the Sutlej without formal notification,” officials said. The move triggered high alerts in at least nine Punjab districts, including Kasur, Okara, Bahawalnagar, Pakpattan, Vehari, Lodhran, Bahawalpur, Multan and Muzaffargarh. Authorities fear additional inflows could worsen situation already described as ‘extremely high flood’ at several points.

The NDMA reported 881 fatalities and 1,176 injuries nationwide in flood-related incidents. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) has borne the heaviest toll with 488 deaths, followed by Punjab with 223 fatalities, Sindh 58, Balochistan 26, Gilgit-Baltistan 41, Azad Kashmir 37, and Islamabad reported eight deaths. Among the victims are 510 men, 134 women, and 237 children.

The floods have destroyed more than 8,200 homes and killed at least 6,180 livestock, compounding economic losses for families already struggling with rising cost of living.

Officials estimate that more than 2.4 million people have been directly affected, while 900,000 have been displaced while large number of settlements and acres of farmland have vanished.