A preliminary assessment of the wildlife trade in badgers (Meles leucurus and Arctonyx spp.) (Carnivora: Mustelidae) in South Korea

Abstract

We provide a preliminary assessment of a previously overlooked wildlife trade, the legal trade in badgers (Meles leucurus and Arctonyx spp.) and badger-derived products in South Korea. A new phase of the trade emerged in the 1990s with the establishment of wildlife farms to supply demand for badger as an edible and medicinal resource, including as a substitute for Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), a Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix I species. We trace the continued existence of badger farms to supply trade between 2001 and 2020, supplemented by imported badger-derived products and some apparent illegal harvesting of wild Meles leucurus in South Korea. The range of badger-derived products available to consumers has diversified during the last two decades and now encompasses human food, traditional medicine, cosmetics, dietary supplements, and accessories. We recommend improved monitoring and regulation of the trade, given that legal farming, and potential illegal wild harvest, may present important risks to: (i) wild Meles leucurus populations in South Korea and Arctonyx spp. populations in Asia, which are currently poorly monitored; (ii) the welfare of traded badgers, as territorial mammals with specific social and housing needs; (iii) human health, with mustelid farms now in greater focus as potential sources of novel zoonotic diseases.

Keywords

• mustelid
• Republic of Korea
• small carnivore trade
• wildlife farming
• zoonotic diseases