Pangolin: Scaling death

Human appetite for pangolin scales has put the mammal on the list of endangered species.

An impervious skin, covered in tough, imbricate scales and a shy personality best describe a pangolin — an anteater living on the periphery of civilisation. But even their preference to lead solitary lives in deep burrows has failed to shield them from human exploitation.

Out of the eight pangolin species found in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, the Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) is found in Pakistan. The mammal resides in barren, hilly areas or deserts and there have been reported sightings in the Potohar plateau when the nocturnal animal steps out of its shelter in search for food. But with the soaring demand for pangolin skin products in the international market, the mammal might soon become completely extinct.



The declining mammal population is a result of the illegal trading of pangolin scales for magic rituals, bullet-proof jackets, shoes, clothes and flesh for medicines, primarily in China. Local practitioners believe the scales have aphrodisiac properties. Nearly 181 pangolins have been illegally captured or killed in Pakistan between January 2011 and May 2012, reveals Illegal Mass Killing of Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) in Potohar Region, Pakistan, a 2012 study conducted by the Department of Wildlife Management and the Department of Zoology in Pakistan. Out of the total, 45 bodies were discovered scale-less and dumped inside an unused railway tunnel near Chakwal. Nomads and hunters from all four districts of the plateau, Chakwal, Attock, Jhelum and Rawalpindi, have been held directly responsible for the act which has become a profitable sport. Every kill secures a sum of Rs10,000 to Rs15,000, depending on the size.

“We lack information on estimates and behaviour of pangolins in Sindh, whereas it is a protected animal according to the Sindh Wildlife Protection Ordinance 1972,” says Dr Fehmida Firdous, deputy conservator for the Sindh Wildlife department. Fear of further decline in the number of Indian pangolins rises as other Asian species, especially the Malayan pangolin (Manis javanica) and the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla), approach extinction. According to the above study, the Punjab Wildlife Acts and Rules, 1975, has declared the mammal a protected species. In its recommendations it urges for the species to be moved from the category of ‘near threatened’ to ‘endangered’ in the near future.

Misconception and a general lack of awareness have also spurred killings. The anteaters are commonly sighted at graveyards where they wander in search of termite mounds, and this has inadvertently earned them the label of ‘murda khors’ or grave diggers. Pangolins with their short limbs and sharp claws dig through the mounds and, due to a lack of teeth, use their long, sticky tongues to attract prey and swallow it whole. According to experts, it’s the mammal’s very diet that allows it to play an important ecological role by serving as pest control.

Although the Indian pangolin is protected under numerous wildlife ordinances in Pakistan, poaching continues. According to the Inspector-General from the Forestry department, Syed Mahmood Nasir, one way to deter trade is to, “Place signboards and very visible ones on all points of exit (airports) to educate the customs officers.” Since protection measures are still at a bare minimum, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Wildlife department, including religious leaders and community members, have taken it upon themselves to punish poachers, and over the past year and a half have put over a dozen behind bars, imposed heavy fines and confiscated dead animals. “Unfortunately, they (poachers) have now moved towards Punjab,” laments Conservator Wildlife Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Chaudhry Muhammad Razzaq.

George Sadiq is a member of IUCN Commission on Education and Communication. 

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, April 6^th, 2014.