Conservation genetics of the white-bellied pangolin in West Africa: A story of lineage admixture, declining demography, and wide sourcing by urban bushmeat markets.

During the last 40 years, the volumes of African pangolins feeding the illegal wildlife trade have dramatically increased. We conducted a conservation genetics survey of the most traded African species, the white bellied pangolin (WBP; Phataginus tricuspis), across three West African countries including Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, and Ghana. Our study combining mitochondrial DNA sequencing and microsatellite genotyping is the first to reveal a wide pattern of admixture between two of the six mitochondrial lineages as previously delimited within WBP. We found a signature of isolation by distance but a lack of population genetic structuring, supporting the idea that WBP may have underestimated dispersal abilities. Levels of genetic diversity were low in West African lineages (WAfr and Gha) compared to Central Africa, reinforcing the picture of genetic pauperization shared by West African WBP. We observed a 85%-98% decline in the effective population size of WBP occurring c. 3200 to 400 ya, with current numbers (520-590) at the lower end of the conservative thresholds for minimum viable population size. The microsatellite markers were powerful enough to differentiate between individuals and identify replicated samples, confirming the utility of this approach in tracing the pangolin trade. Genetic diversity estimates confirmed that Yopougon, the main bushmeat market from Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire), was fed by a large trade network as confirmed by vendors reporting 10 different sources situated 62-459 km away from the market. We conclude that WBP distributed in the Upper Guinean Block should be considered a single management unit of high conservation concern, as impacted by genetic diversity erosion, drastic decline in effective population size, and wide range sourcing for feeding urban bushmeat markets. Given the genetic admixture pattern detected within WBP from West Africa, we advocate for a multi-locus strategy to trace the international trade of the species.

Au cours des 40 dernières années, les volumes de pangolins africains alimentant le commerce illégal d'espèces sauvages ont augmenté de façon spectaculaire. Nous avons mené une étude de génétique de la conservation sur l'espèce africaine la plus braconnée, le pangolin à ventre blanc (PVB; Phataginus tricuspis), à travers trois pays d'Afrique de l'Ouest incluant la Guinée, la Côte d'Ivoire et le Ghana. Notre étude combinant le séquençage de l'ADN mitochondrial et le génotypage par microsatellites est la première à révéler un patron généralisé d'admixture entre deux des six lignées mitochondriales précédemment délimitées au sein du PVB. Nous mettons en évidence une signature d'isolement par la distance mais un manque de structuration génétique des populations, soutenant l'idée que le PVB a des capacités de dispersion jusque­là sous­estimées. Les niveaux de diversité génétique observés dans les lignées d'Afrique de l'Ouest (WAfr et Gha) sont faibles par rapport à ceux observés en Afrique Centrale, confirmant la paupérisation génétique des populations de PVB en Afrique de l'Ouest. Nous avons observé un déclin de 85 à 98% de la taille efficace de la population ouest­africaine entre 3200 et 400 ans, les estimations actuelles (520­590) se situant à l'extrémité inférieure des seuils minimums de viabilité. Les marqueurs microsatellites utilisés sont suffisamment puissants pour différencier les individus et identifier les doublons d'échantillons, confirmant l'utilité de ces marqueurs pour tracer le commerce des pangolins. Nos estimations de diversité génétique ont confirmé que Yopougon, le principal marché de viande de brousse d'Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire), était alimenté par un vaste réseau commercial, comme le confirment les vendeurs signalant 10 sources différentes situées à 62­459 km du marché. Nous concluons que les PVB présents dans le bloc forestier de Haute Guinée devraient être considérés comme une seule unité de gestion à fort intérêt de conservation, étant soumis à une érosion de sa diversité génétique, un déclin drastique de la taille efficace de sa population et un approvisionnement à grande échelle des marchés urbains de viande de brousse. Compte tenu du schéma d'admixture génétique détecté chez les PVB d'Afrique de l'Ouest, nous préconisons une stratégie multi­locus pour tracer le commerce international de l'espèce.

Is social media the new wet market? Social media platforms facilitate the online sale of bushmeat in West Africa.

Social media provides a platform for wildlife crime syndicates to access a global consumer-driven market. Whilst studies have uncovered the online trade in wildlife, the availability of wild meat (bushmeat) has not been assessed. To investigate the sale of wild meat online, we analysed 563 posts published between 2018 and 2022 from six West African Facebook pages selected using predetermined search criteria. Across 1511 images and 18 videos, we visually identified 25 bushmeat species-level taxa including mammals (six Rodentia, five Artiodactyla, three Carnivora, two Pholidota, one Primate, two Lagomorpha, one Hyracoidea), birds (three Galliformes) and reptiles (two Squamata), predominately advertised as smoked (63%) or fresh (30%) whole carcasses or portions. Among the species identified, 16% feature a status of concern on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (Near Threatened to Endangered), 16% are listed on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES; Appendix I and II) and 24% are either fully or partially protected by local legislation. Images were commonly used as propaganda rather than to display inventory, where additional taxa protected from game hunting in West Africa, such as hornbill, were exclusively listed in captions. The advertisement of these protected and vulnerable species on the surface web indicates weak local and international legislative enforcement. Comparatively, when the same search criteria were applied to the deep web browser Tor no results were generated, reinforcing the idea that bushmeat vendors have no need to hide their activities online. Despite local and international trade restrictions, the taxa advertised feature similarities with bushmeat seizures reported in Europe, alluding to the interconnectedness of the trade facilitated by social media. We conclude that enhanced policy enforcement is essential to combat the online sale of bushmeat and mitigate the potential biodiversity and public health impacts.