The remarkably sensitive moment in history we are passing through is a predictable result of human misbehavior on natural resources by the exploitation of wildlife, hunting and trade that have made possible the global emergence of an unprecedented infectious disease – the SARS-COV 19 pandemic. In addition to the crucial point of view of the possibility of the occurrence of the critical phenomenon called "spillover", where a given pathogen can “jump" and be transmitted to a new recipient species, we must strongly consider the impact of exploitation in wildlife conservation. According to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) of Wild Animals, the report of the Aquatic Mammals Working Group defined aquatic wild meat as products from organs and structures of aquatic animals (including mammals and reptiles), from illegal capture and whose purpose goes beyond subsistence. Capture reports for obtaining meat, blubber, leather, other types of skin and fur; use of bones as an adornment or decoration; mutilation for use in popular rituals and beliefs, among others, are rather common worldwide.
Unregulated and illegal hunts or accidental captures can directly affect aquatic communities, leaving them vulnerable to extinction processes, both by reducing their effective size and by the loss of genetic diversity. Considering this, we are proposing a Research Topic on a Worldwide Survey on the Trade of Aquatic Wildmeat and its impact on endangered species. Our goals are to provide broad coverage of the trade of endangered species of aquatic mammals, reptiles and invertebrates used for multiple purposes, including medicine, religion, magic etc. According to CMS, seabirds harvest is an issue of particular importance and hunting of sharks and ray species requires further consideration. We intend to bring unpublished data to a wide public interested in the issue of the illegal trade of aquatic species. We are aware of how difficult it could be to obtain such data under normal circumstances. As such, we encourage scientists and stakeholders to contribute with their data even if it is preliminary.
We welcome manuscripts relating but not limited to the following themes:
• Report unregulated trade of endangered species of aquatic fauna worldwide;
• Provide numbers and values of the trade of aquatic wild meat;
• Estimate approximate numbers of specimens traded in this illegal commerce in different scenarios;
• Identify groups of special concern that may include marine mammals, reptiles (sea turtles and crocodiles), seabirds, sharks and rays;
• Implementation of taxonomic techniques for forensic identification of aquatic wild meat
• Identify hotspots of trade of aquatic wild meat.
The remarkably sensitive moment in history we are passing through is a predictable result of human misbehavior on natural resources by the exploitation of wildlife, hunting and trade that have made possible the global emergence of an unprecedented infectious disease – the SARS-COV 19 pandemic. In addition to the crucial point of view of the possibility of the occurrence of the critical phenomenon called "spillover", where a given pathogen can “jump" and be transmitted to a new recipient species, we must strongly consider the impact of exploitation in wildlife conservation. According to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) of Wild Animals, the report of the Aquatic Mammals Working Group defined aquatic wild meat as products from organs and structures of aquatic animals (including mammals and reptiles), from illegal capture and whose purpose goes beyond subsistence. Capture reports for obtaining meat, blubber, leather, other types of skin and fur; use of bones as an adornment or decoration; mutilation for use in popular rituals and beliefs, among others, are rather common worldwide.
Unregulated and illegal hunts or accidental captures can directly affect aquatic communities, leaving them vulnerable to extinction processes, both by reducing their effective size and by the loss of genetic diversity. Considering this, we are proposing a Research Topic on a Worldwide Survey on the Trade of Aquatic Wildmeat and its impact on endangered species. Our goals are to provide broad coverage of the trade of endangered species of aquatic mammals, reptiles and invertebrates used for multiple purposes, including medicine, religion, magic etc. According to CMS, seabirds harvest is an issue of particular importance and hunting of sharks and ray species requires further consideration. We intend to bring unpublished data to a wide public interested in the issue of the illegal trade of aquatic species. We are aware of how difficult it could be to obtain such data under normal circumstances. As such, we encourage scientists and stakeholders to contribute with their data even if it is preliminary.
We welcome manuscripts relating but not limited to the following themes:
• Report unregulated trade of endangered species of aquatic fauna worldwide;
• Provide numbers and values of the trade of aquatic wild meat;
• Estimate approximate numbers of specimens traded in this illegal commerce in different scenarios;
• Identify groups of special concern that may include marine mammals, reptiles (sea turtles and crocodiles), seabirds, sharks and rays;
• Implementation of taxonomic techniques for forensic identification of aquatic wild meat
• Identify hotspots of trade of aquatic wild meat.
