03/08/2025
The illegal wildlife trade is the fourth biggest illegal activity worldwide, behind only arms, drugs and human trafficking. It is estimated that the industry is worth around $23 billion a year, leaving a path of destruction which is wiping out species at an unprecedented rate.
Some recent statistics:
- For every baby chimpanzee that becomes a victim of this trade, 10 chimps are killed in the process
- 55 African Elephants are poached everyday
- 1 million pangolins have been killed in the last 10 years.
This image was taken on an assignment for where I visited a family home in Thailand that was keeping this Macaque as a pet outside, in a small wooden crate. Bars on the outside of the crate with the monkey also chained by the neck inside.
