Wildlife is defined as animals, birds and fishes that are neither human nor domesticated. 

Sadly many of these wild animals living in their natural habitat are daily slaughtered and taken in thousands for trafficking by some criminal cartels who sell wild animal parts to willing buyers who may want to use them for food, social status, medicine and other commercial purposes.

Generally, the most traded wildlife animals include rhino, pangolin, lion, crocodile, tortoises, exotic birds and other endangered terrestrial animals as classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a body established in 1948 to address global priority for conservation action and thus provide wildlife forensics understanding like scientific knowledge and tools to deal with wildlife crime cases. 

Features of Wildlife Crime

The illegal wildlife trade is both a global and domestic crime. Where there is a crime, criminal investigators have to look for evidence from a crime scene and interpret the findings.

The global illegal wildlife trade is on the increase with animals trafficking and poaching affecting negatively global wildlife populations daily.

Wildlife crime officers are responsible for bringing animal traffickers and poachers to justice because it is illegal to kill or traffic a protected animal without a permit from the State.

Killing wild animals, hunting or buying and selling protected animals, illegal possession and concealing illegally imported wild animals,  unlawful harvest of animal parts (such as rhino horns, pangolin scales, elephant ivory, big cats, fish, bear parts, turtle and lion bones) as well as trade in products derived from exotic and wild animals, wildlife smuggling, bush burning and disturbance of any part of an endangered species without permit or licence are all forms of wildlife crimes. 

Wildlife Forensics Investigation

Using scientific knowledge to investigate the facts surrounding the crime is a discipline of forensic science.

Thus, wildlife forensics covers any investigation on illegal wildlife trade and plant species that are illegally traded by criminals and identifies possible endangered species.   

In simple terms, wildlife forensics is the application of science to legal concerns involving biological resources. 

Through the collection of samples of blood, fur and claws from wild animals and endangered species, investigation and submission of proofs of poaching or death of animals aided by human interaction provides an evidence to trace the perpetrators of wildlife crime.

The ability to determine for example which animal killed another, which animal fathered a particular species, how DNA testing or samples can help nature park services to conduct genetic testing and analysis to study and identify animals, obtaining GPS data from tagged animals, adapting forensic fingerprinting techniques for those who lift fingermarks from the scales of endangered animals, and the study of the effect of urbanization on wildlife helps provide evidential insights on tracking of animal movement.

With regards to forest structure and ecology, forensic tools and electronic devices have also been of help to scientists who navigate the forests to conduct research on wild animals.

Facial recognition could also spot endangered Lemurs in the jungle since they have unique facial characteristics that can be recognized by the system. 

Essentially, wildlife forensics is geared towards using scientific procedures to examine, identify and compare evidence from crime scenes and to link this evidence with a suspect or a victim.

Wildlife forensic scientists analyse biological samples that have been collected as evidence and apply procedures to investigate crimes against wildlife in cases of poaching, smuggling, animal cruelty, bioterrorism, oil spills and other ecological disasters before being called to testify in Court as an expert witness.  

Wildlife Poaching Case Study

In 1998, an Iowa hunter returned from a Safari to Africa with the skull of a brown hyena.

Forensic wildlife experts had to use a morphology test to compare the retrieved skull to a series of hyena skulls in order to confirm the retrieved skull as illegal. The hunter was thereafter fined and his hunting license was revoked worldwide. 

Similarly, stories abound of organized criminal networks that are involved in elephant poaching and engaging in illegal ivory trade in unprecedented volumes that is threatening the survival of African elephants populations according to the report produced by United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network (TRAFFIC). 

Operating Framework for Wildlife Crime Protection

A global organisation such as the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) of which include the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNDOC); International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL)’s Environmental Security Unit; Convention on International trade in Endangered Species (CITES); World Bank and the World Customs Organization (WICO)  in 2014 released a worldwide  ‘Guidelines on Methods and Procedures for Ivory Sampling and Laboratory Analysis to canvass for the deployment of forensic technology to combat elephant poaching and disrupt the organized wildlife criminal networks.

The Guidelines are aimed at strengthening domestic legislations while also providing resource materials to first responders, investigators, law enforcement officials, forensic scientists, prosecutors and the judiciary to familiarize themselves with the guidelines that are divided into four parts to wit:

• Crime scene management
• Methods and procedures for the identification of ivory
• How to interpret scientific data
• The role of international cooperation

The purpose is to facilitate the use of forensic science to combat wildlife crime in order to have impact on a successful law enforcement operation, transnational criminal investigation and prosecution and a reduction in the illegal wildlife trade. 

It is therefore important to curb this criminal activity because more than 70% of emerging zoonotic infectious diseases are said to emanate from wildlife with particular reference to Covid-19 which originated from a food market in China where wild animals are bought and sold.

Due to the human-wildlife interaction that has led to rising zoonotic infectious diseases  in the world and the need to protect public health and regulate wildlife trade, it has become necessary to put a stop and penalize wildlife crimes.

In Nigeria, the laws protecting the wildlife includes Section 20 of the 1999 Constitution, the National Environmental (Protection of Endangered Species in International Trade) Regulations 2011 and National Environmental (Control of Bush/Forest Fire and Open Burning) Regulations 2011 while the agency that protects the wildlife is the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) under the Federal Ministry of Environment.

Wildlife Conservation Challenges

Criminals involved in illegal wildlife trade network continue to operate with impunity as there is almost no evidence of successful arrests, prosecutions or convictions although concerted efforts have been made by affected countries to curtail the crime.

In many developing countries, there are no wildlife forensic laboratories to ensure criminal investigations are consistent with global best practices.

Cameroun for instance decided to use their traditional army to hunt down poachers while Kenya increased penalties for wildlife poaching and trafficking of ivory.

A Kenyan group called United against Poaching has suggested that wildlife crime offenders should have their names publicly listed online so as to shame poachers and traffickers, but challenges to apprehend these offenders still persist. 

In addition, oral histories previously showed that locals depended on elephants to assist them in ecosystem of trails in the forest but the loss of pathways, hunting, poaching and poor conservation have deeply affected elephant trails.   

Recommendation and Conclusion

In a bid to combat and further deter wildlife and forest crime, special investigative techniques enhanced by increased use of wildlife forensic science and technology will help determine the source or origin of those involved in wildlife criminal activities and identify suspects in accordance with standard forensic procedures. 

Written by: Oluwatomi Ajayi