Galapagos Wildlife Trafficking Ring Exposed: Rare Iguanas Smuggled Through False African Breeding Claims | Travel News

A complex international wildlife trafficking organization has been unmasked for trafficking at least 60 rare iguanas from Ecuador's unique Galapagos Islands, using falsified documents that falsely claimed the reptiles had been bred in captivity in countries in Africa where no captive breeding occurs.

New investigations now show that criminal networks are capturing these endemic species from the protected archipelago, then declaring falsely that they were bred in captivity in countries such as Mali and Uganda. The trafficked reptiles are then forwarded to buyers located in North America, Asia, and Europe - often for thousands of dollars for each iguana.
 

Four Endangered Species at Risk

The Galapagos Islands contain four unique iguanas that are found nowhere else in the world. The pink land iguana is the most endangered, with an estimated 300 individuals left on Isabela Island, and is classified as critically endangered. The removal of even 10 of these unique iguanas would have a substantial effect on the species.

 

The Galapagos Islands are home to the only marine iguana species in the world, which spends the majority of its time underwater as it searches for algae. There are two other iguanas species found on land, the yellow land iguana and the Santa Fe land iguana. All three species are considered vulnerable by international conservation groups, in addition to the pink land iguana.
 

 

A Trafficking Modus Operandi and Arrests

These ancient-looking reptiles are difficult to catch, as they can fight back with powerful tail strikes and bites. Experts suggested speculators are likely capturing juvenile iguanas. Juvenile iguanas are small, easier to ship, and can adapt to care in captivity.

Recent law enforcement actions on the Galapagos Islands demonstrate wildlife trafficking. A German citizen was caught attempting to smuggle four baby iguanas in 2012, and in 2015, a Mexican national was arrested for trying to export 11 iguanas. Traffickers even post videos and pictures of the captures on social media.
 

Legal Loophole and Global Failure

This trafficking scheme used the international wildlife trade monitoring systems' weaknesses against each country. While conventions exist to manage wildlife commerce, the importing nations failed to determine the origin of the specimens. No country consulted Ecuador about its authenticity as an organization, despite their never issuing any live iguana export permits.

This organization of deception allows guards to not monitor endangered species once traded. Through the identification as captive bred, traffickers could disguise wild-caught animals as captivity bred animals and export them with no international protections for endangered species.