These shy, scaly anteaters are the most trafficked mammals in the world

These shy, scaly anteaters are the most trafficked mammals in the world Conservationists are raising the plight of the pangolin, a scaly anteater found in parts of Africa and Asia that is the most trafficked mammal in the world By GERALD IMRAY Associated Press February 20, 2026, 8:03 PM CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- They are hunted for their unique scales, and the demand makes them the most trafficked mammal in the world. Wildlife conservationists are again raising the plight of pangolins , the shy, scaly anteaters found in parts of Africa and Asia, on World Pangolin Day on Saturday. Pangolins or pangolin products outstrip any other mammal when it comes to wildlife smuggling, with more than half a million pangolins seized in anti-trafficking operations between 2016 and 2024, according to a report last year by CITES, the global authority on the trading of endangered plant and animal species. The World Wildlife Fund estimates that over a million pangolins were taken from the wild over the last decade, including those that were never intercepted. Pangolins meat is a delicacy in places, but the driving force behind the illegal trade is their scales, which are made of keratin, the protein also found in human hair and fingernails. The scales are in high demand in China and other parts of Asia due to the unproven belief that they cure a range of ailments when made into traditional medicine. There are eight pangolin species, four in Africa and four in Asia. All of them face a high, very high or extremely high risk of extinction. While they're sometimes known as scaly anteaters, pangolins are not related in any way to anteaters or armadillos. They are unique in that they are the only mammals covered completely in keratin scales, which overlap and have sharp edges. They are the perfect defense mechanism, allowing a pangolin to roll up into an armored ball that even lions struggle to get to grip with, leaving the nocturnal ant and termite eaters with few natural predators. But th...