PANGOLIN CONSERVATION SUPPORT

Pangolins have been put in a position where they are in desperate need of help. Wild Tomorrow Fund has been proactive in finding ways to be a part of that help and we’d like to share some of our most recent efforts to support pangolin conservation.

Photos by Matt Lobenhofer

You’d be hard pressed to find a more unique animal than a pangolin. From being the only scaled mammal to its adorable bipedal walk, there’s a lot to like about them but unfortunately, they’ve quickly gained notoriety for another reason.

Made of keratin, same as your finger nails or hair, pangolin scales are the primary reason they are so heavily trafficked.

If you’ve read our blog post Pioneering Pangolins or attended our virtual World Pangolin Day event earlier this year, you’re likely familiar with the intensive trafficking these animals face for traditional Eastern medicines and the severe threat to their populations that comes with. The four Asian species of pangolin are listed as endangered or critically endangered and the sharp decline in their populations have shifted many traffickers to the slightly more abundant and thus easier to find African pangolins. Because of this, there has been a recent surge in the trafficking of our four African pangolin species, which are all currently listed as vulnerable with declining populations. Together, the eight species of pangolin are the most trafficked non-human animals in the world.

Here in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, we are situated at the southern end of the Temminck’s ground pangolin’s shrinking range. Ecologically extinct in this region that they once inhabited, two of our neighboring reserves, Phinda Private Game Reserve and Manyoni Private Game Reserve are working with the African Pangolin Working Group (APWG) to reestablish populations of these curious creatures and we’ve been there along the way to help. Wild Tomorrow Fund has been able to contribute to these efforts, largely thanks to donations from supporters like you!

The process begins with individuals confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade. They are rehabilitated and undergo a slow and careful release process on the reserves previously mentioned with intensive monitoring to ensure the best chance for survival and to improve upon future releases. Satellite tags play a critical role in monitoring, providing continuous locations of the pangolins for researchers and monitors. This can get to be expensive for the reserves as some need to be replaced and new units are required. One of our August volunteers, Barbara Merolli, was generous enough to donate a tag for Phinda’s pangolins. This gave the rest of our volunteers the once in a lifetime opportunity to go out and spend a morning monitoring this young female, Tot!

Tot has two tags in case one comes off. One may come off while she moves around in her burrow or one could even be pulled off by another animal! Although their scales are sufficient protection from predators, one may get a tag off while trying to figure out a way through her armor.

Pangolins are pretty picky when it comes to food as they often prefer to eat only one or two species of ant or termite!

Once fully released, it’s still important to monitor individuals while they form the foundations of a population. Our friends at fStop Foundation donated four camera traps with infrared flash to help monitor burrow entrances of the pangolins that have been released. We sent two to Manyoni and two to Phinda where they will be put to good use, keeping track of their individuals, learning more about pangolin behaviors, and furthering the efficiency of pangolin conservation practices. The information collected from these could have implications for pangolin conservation throughout Africa!

(Left) Tori with Craig Sholto-Douglas (and Tot!) of the Phinda pangolin Team and (Right) Tori with Simone Marshall-Smith of the Manyoni pangolin team, handing over the camera traps for burrow monitoring!

The work that the APWG is doing with the monitors at Phinda and Manyoni has the potential to be the beginnings of an amazing conservation success story. The reestablishment of pangolin populations here in KZN does not only have local implications but contributes to the restoration of a balanced ecosystem and could provide a model for other pangolin reintroductions across Africa. It’s time we started making positive news about pangolins and Wild Tomorrow Fund is so excited to play a part in that!

 If you’d like to get involved in this pangolin progress, you can donate specifically to pangolin conservation here. Donations will support rehabilitation and release, monitoring equipment, patrol staff, and more!