Some of the bright orange bats were framed in shadow boxes, their boldly striped wings spread wide. Others were mounted in miniature coffins with shiny fittings. A few were promoted as unique gifts for occasions like Halloween and Christmas.
Bigger, more charismatic species like elephants and tigers often dominate discussions about the illegal animal trade. However, a recent study has shed light on a thriving black market involving stuffed and mounted bats, a previously overlooked aspect of illegal wildlife trafficking. In the United States, the open sale of bats, either intact or as skeletons, on popular e-commerce platforms such as Etsy, eBay, and Amazon has been highlighted.
“If people aren’t discerning, they might think they’re buying products that are sustainably sourced, but they’re not,” said Nistara Randhawa, an epidemiologist and data scientist at the University of California, Davis, and a co-author of the study. “Instead, they could be inadvertently supporting the population decline of this bat species in the wild.”
| Platform | Observation |
|---|---|
| eBay | First noticed a concerning number of bat listings in 2014 |
| Etsy, Amazon | Regularly monitored for bat specimens from October to December 2022 |
Researchers focused their attention on Kerivoula picta, also known as the painted woolly bat or fire bat, a species from Asia recognizable by its distinctive orange fur and striped wings. The researchers discovered that this particular species was prevalent in the online listings they examined.
In 2020, conservationists classified K. picta as “near threatened” due to a potential population decline of up to 25% over 15 years. The study identified online demand for bat specimens and skulls as a significant factor contributing to this decline.
