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I watched on television as the plane landed at the Atlanta International Airport, with much fanfare the plane's cargo door opened and two large crates were lowered to the ground. The crates contained two giant pandas that arrived on loan from the Chinese government.
The pandas, which are part of Beijing's long tradition of panda diplomacy were taken to Zoo Atlanta.
The pandas, a male named Ping Ping and a female named Fu Shuang, arrived Sunday, on a FedEx flight from Chengdu, located in southwestern China. They are the third pair of pandas to arrive in the United States in the past two years. Their arrival at Zoo Atlanta was met with great fanfare due to the rarity of pandas in United State zoos.
In 2024, Zoo Atlanta returned four pandas to China that had been living at the zoo.
This ended a 25-year agreement between Zoo Atlanta and China. Ping Ping and Fu Shuang are the third pair of pandas to arrive in the United States in the past two years.
This panda diplomacy is quite different from the article I read in the International Game Warden Magazine.
The article was about a large undercover operation called Operation Thunder. It was a global operation against illegal trafficking of wild fauna and flora, in which 30,000 live animals were seized along with the arrest of 1,100 suspects. There were tens of thousands of protected animals and tens of thousands cubic meters of illegally logged timber seized. Also 30 tons of species classified as endangered were also seized.
The operation occurred in 134 countries. Nearly 10,500 butterflies, spiders and insects were seized around the world. More than 40 shipments of insects and 80 shipments of butterflies were also intercepted at a United States mail center.
While working for the Pennsylvania Game Commission, I had training in illegal trafficking of wild animals, fauna and flora.
Training classes were held at field conferences or in-service meetings to bring the officers up to date on the changing illegal trafficking with exotic pets. I remember one year we were sent to an endangered species workshop held by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Although there has always been illegal traffic in wildlife species for pets, much of this training was about exotic species.
We were also instructed on illegal traffic in wildlife and fauna and flora. I do remember that it was a lot of information to digest in one session. At the end of the training we were given a large manual to refer to.
As I left the training session, I thought to myself I will never have the need to use any of this training here in Bradford County. I put the training manual on a shelf and forgot about it until months later when I received a call from a man that had a cayman as a pet. While moving the cayman into a larger pen, the man was bit by the cayman and now he wanted me to come and get rid of it.
The first thing I did was to find the training manual and check whether a cayman was an endangered species. It was not. This situation came under our sister agency, the Fish Commission -- now PA Fish and Boat Commission -- however their officer was not available. I made arrangements to pick up the animal and deliver it to a zoo in Scranton.
Even though I had the training in illegal trafficking on wildlife, I was really amazed when I read about Operation Thunder. I knew about cases involving illegal ivory, turtles and animal parts but I had no idea there was traffic in illegal timber, butterflies, live pangolins and abalones.
I had to research these two species to learn what they were.
A pangolin is an African and Asian mammal that has a body covered with horny overlapping scales, a small head with elongated snout, a long sticky tongue for catching ants and termites and a thick, tapering tail. When I saw the picture I said to myself: anteater. The name anteater is also commonly applied to the aardvarks, numbats, echidnas, and pangolins, however they are not closely related to true anteaters.
The abalones are marine mollusks, recognized for their distinctive, flattened, ear-shaped shells and prized meat. They inhabit coastal waters, clinging to rocky surfaces. Their shells feature an iridescent interior, often called mother-of-pearl. An abalone is a culinary delicacy in many cultures due to its rich flavor and texture. The shell is sought after for decorations.
Perhaps you think that illegal trafficking of wildlife is only going on in other nations but it occurs right here in our United States.
For instance, our snapping turtles are being sold on the Asian medicine trade black market, a trade thriving on the illegal killing of wildlife and the big profits made through this poaching.
I remember reading about an incident that occurred when the state police made a traffic stop regarding a van traveling at a high rate of speed on I-80. As it turned out this was not going to be a typical traffic stop. While questioning the two Asian occupants, the trooper heard a sound coming from the rear of the van. When asked about the noise the two men replied that they were the only ones in the van.
Upon investigation, the trooper discovered 29 extremely large snapping turtles moving about in the rear of the van. Eventually, the two men, who were from New York, told the trooper that they had purchased the turtles.
After contacting the PA Fish and Boat Commission, the trooper found out that the two men had neither fishing licenses nor receipts to prove the turtles were purchased. The snapping turtles were seized.
This incident led to an undercover operation in which two PA Fish and Boat Commission Officers began dealing in illegal wildlife with these two Asian men. The undercover officers eventually sold 16 rattlesnakes and -- over the next 18 months -- illegal wildlife, including beaver and black bear plus gallbladders taken from black bear.
The Asian men involved were charged with 28 violations. Eventually, the defendants, who pled guilty to seven summary and two misdemeanors, were ordered to pay fines of $9,609.89.
This reminded me of the market hunting days at the end of the 1800s. I had in my collection an old flyer Dec. 17, 1892, which was advertising that the dealer wanted to buy almost anything, including wild game. The flyer stated that the buyer was not receiving enough game and needed rabbits, quail and partridges to fill his orders. He was offering above prices of any game house in the city.
All types of wild game, such as rabbits, grouse, squirrels, quail and deer were sold. It was printed that large ducks (black ducks, red heads, mallards and pintails) were sold for $2 a pair; smaller ducks (mallards, teals) sold for 75 cents a pair; grouse sold for $1.10 a pair; rabbits sold for fifteen to 40 a pair.
The flyer also advertised for hides (bear, beaver, fox.). However, ducks bore the blunt of these market hunters.
The market hunting days came to a close in the early 1900s with the formation of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Even so, most of the game offered in 1892 can still be bought today on the black market.
Bill Bower is a retired Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Officer. Read his blog and listen to his podcasts on the outdoors at www.onemaningreen.com.