8th Nov., 2017

Large casinos, hotels, shopping malls and markets flourish in Southeast Asia’s Golden Triangle — the area where Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar converge. These gambling halls and markets, known to be centers of prostitution and drug trafficking, have now emerged as hubs of wildlife trade.

From tiger skin and bones to skulls, forelegs and gall bladder of the goat-like serow, the Golden Triangle’s shops and hotels have become a haven for illegal wildlife products, according to recent surveys by WWF and TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.

Based on these surveys, the teams have identified 10 of the most widely trafficked animals in the Golden Triangle: the tiger, elephant, pangolin, bear, rhinoceros, serow, helmeted hornbill, gaur, leopard, and turtles.

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