Research leads to successful prosecution of illegal turtle traders in Hong Kong

Research spearheaded by a University of Suffolk academic has led to the successful prosecution of illegal turtle traders in Hong Kong.

Dr Hei Sung from the University’s Wildlife, Ecology and Conservation Science course has been investigating chemical traces from turtle claws, which can determine whether the creature was bred in captivity or taken from the wild.

The technique, called stable isotope analysis, assesses a small sample of keratin from the turtle’s claw. The sample contains an environmental blueprint that captures the conditions the turtle has lived in over a long period of time, meaning it can be compared to isotope traces in various sources in nature.

The research sampled 126 wild and 57 captive turtles in Hong Kong, including two critically endangered species – the Big-headed Turtle and the Golden Coin Turtle – as well as two other endangered species – Beale’s Eyed Turtle and Chinese Pond Turtle.

The study, published in the journal Global Ecology and Conservation, explained that laundering of wild-caught animals as captive-bred is a frequent practice by illegal wildlife traders, threatening worldwide biodiversity and leading to declines in some populations. 

Turtles, the research report added, were among the world’s most threatened and illegal traded groups.

The study authors worked with the Hong Kong Government in three real wildlife seizure cases, and in all three cases at least one individual turtle had a microchip from the researchers’ long term population study, proving they had been sourced from the wild.

The isotope analysis of all the seized turtles in those three cases – both microchipped and non-microchipped – found them to be similar to their wild counterparts, providing important evidence to aid the prosecution of illegal traders.

Researchers hope the study could be influential in helping catch illegal wildlife traders in future, as claw samples are easy to collect and preserve without harming the animal, and the isotope analysis can be used in conjunction with other evidence such as microchips and DNA evidence.

Dr Sung said: “Illegal wildlife trafficking can be a serious problem for endangered species, and we know that turtles caught from the wild are frequently traded as being captive bred. 

“Stable isotope analysis offers a reliable, robust, but currently underutilised tool to help combat this illegal trading.

“We hope that our research advocates for further isotopic profiling in future seizures, expanding its application to more species and geographical locations to support the management of wildlife trade and prevent further illegal exploitation globally.” 

The study authors have called for further collaboration between laboratories and enforcement agencies to continue identifying turtles that are being illegally traded or possessed, as well as further testing to build a more comprehensive database of geographic regions and species.

The full research report can be read online here.

To find out more about studying Wildlife, Ecology and Conservation Science at the University of Suffolk visit the course page here.