An Assessment of Wildlife Use by Northern Laos Nationals

Abstract

Simple Summary: Although unsustainable wildlife consumption is a leading threat to biodiversity in Southeast Asia, there is still a notable lack of research around the issue, particularly into which animals may be "on the horizon" of impending conservation concern. Using semistructured interviews, we investigated the consumption of wildlife in northern Laos, with a focus on the use of wildlife for medicinal purposes. Bear bile was the most popular product, but serow bile was second in popularity and used for similar ailments. In light of these results, and considering the vulnerability of both bear and serow populations in the wild, greater concern needs to be taken to reduce demand for these products, before this demand becomes a significant conservation challenge.Abstract: Unsustainable wildlife trade is a well-publicized area of international concern in Laos. Historically rich in both ethnic and biological diversity, Laos has emerged in recent years as a nexus for cross-border trade in floral and faunal wildlife, including endangered and threatened species. However, there has been little sustained research into the scale and scope of consumption of wildlife by Laos nationals themselves. Here, we conducted 100 semistructured interviews to gain a snapshot of consumption of wildlife in northern Laos, where international and in some cases illegal wildlife trade is known to occur. We found that although bear bile for medicine was the most common product consumed, individuals also used a variety of other products, including animals considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature IUCN. The majority of animals we found consumed are classified as "Vulnerable" or "Least Threatened" by the IUCN; however, sufficient demand for a species can cause increased, rapid decline in the species' population and significantly increase the challenge of conserving them. These results therefore illuminate where conservation priorities should shift towards, so that stable-yet-consumed species do not mirror the fate of highly trafficked animals.

Bear bile use at the intersection of maternal health in Cambodia

“…This is important in this context for understanding the choices Khmer women may make around pregnancy, the rationale for these choices, and how this may impact maternal health in Cambodia. Understanding use of wildlife is also important from a biodiversity conservation standpoint, as wildlife populations decline across Southeast Asia, largely due to illegal and unsustainable trade and consumption [23,24]. Additionally, understanding the specific medicinal reasons underlying demand for wildlife will inform thoughtful and targeted demand reduction campaigns [25], which in turn can compassionately incorporate the medicinal concerns and desires of the target group.…”

“…Although bear bile/gallbladder is widely used across East and Southeast Asia for a variety of ailments [21,23,26], there are currently no published, peer-reviewed articles that document its use in women's health. Here, our focus is on bear bile's use by Khmer women in Cambodia for uterine, pregnancy, and post-partum ailments.…”

On the Behavioural Biology of the Mainland Serow: A Comparative Study

“…The mainland serow Capricornis sumatraensis Bechstein, 1799, is distributed from Sumatra to Indochina, Southern China, and Himalaya [20,21]. It is a solitary, forest ungulate, living at low densities and widely poached for meat and traditional medicine [22,23], thus being "vulnerable of extinction" sensu International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN [21,24]. In both sexes, two very large preorbital glands and a conspicuous olfactory apparatus suggest an intensive use of scenting in communication [22,25].…”

Northern Scientific Knowledge and Indigenous Knowledge

“…This proposal first critically reflects on the existing models of development enclaves (e.g., special economic zones, industrial zones) and conservation forests (e.g., protected areas, protected forests) in Laos to underscore Luang Prabang's position as one that not only possesses the country's largest SEZs under planning 4 but also as one of Laos's wildlife trade hotspots-a critical site for combatting wildlife trafficking (Figs. 23 and 24) (Davis & Glikman, 2020). Occupying 4,850 ha of land with a concession lease duration of 99 years and located immediately adjacent to the buffer zone of UNESCO's Luang Prabang World Heritage Site property, the LPSEZ is expected to start construction after the completion of the China-Laos Railway in 2021.…”