Table 1 - uploaded by Li Zhang
Content may be subject to copyright.
Cognition types and frequency analysis of Chinese urban residents' attitude toward wildlife consumption 

Cognition types and frequency analysis of Chinese urban residents' attitude toward wildlife consumption 

Source publication
Article
Full-text available
Commercial trade in wildlife is the major cause of species endangerment and a main threat to animal welfare in China and its neighboring countries. Driven by consumptive use for food and traditional medicine, the large volume of both legal and illegal trade in wildlife has caused great destruction to ecosystems and pushed many species to the brink...

Contexts in source publication

Context 1
... six taxonomic groups found in this study to be affected by trade in China include (species totals are in parentheses, 102 in total): insects (2), fish (2), reptiles (3), amphibians (33), birds (21) and mammals (41). Reptiles and mammals are the most prevalent species in wildlife trade ( Table 1). Eighteen of these species are Category I of China's State Key Protected Wildlife List; 30 are in Category II of China's State Key Protected Wildlife List; 59 of them are CITES-listed (17 from Appendix I, 37 from Appendix II and 5 from Appendix III). ...
Context 2
... kind of wild animals can be used for consumption?'' Through urban Chinese residents' answers to these questions, we can assess general attitudes towards wildlife consumption that the first group is explicitly opposed to wildlife consumption, and they hold ''Pure Protection'' (PP) viewpoint; the second, third and fifth groups are subject to the influence and inducement of various kinds of factors, and thus they may be divided into an interest-driven group-the ''Conditional Utilization''(CU); without misgivings about wildlife consumption, the fourth group holds the ''Pure Utilization'' (PU); those who are not sure about their attitude belong to the ''Vague'' cognition group (see Table 1). ...

Similar publications

Book
Full-text available
The contribution of wild plants and animals to human welfare is widely appreciated but not routinely measured. Reliable and up-to-date information on the economic importance of wild resources is needed to ensure that development policies and investments take account of the full costs and benefits of alternative land uses. This report presents a sum...
Article
Full-text available
This paper summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the weak growth of labor productivity in poor but open economies. The main purpose of the research is to estimate the welfare effects of the reciprocal preferential trade liberalization between Sub-Saharan Africa and the industrialized countries, taking int...
Article
Full-text available
Simple Summary This article takes a future focus on the direction in which social forces develop the market for animal-friendly products in Europe. Although many stakeholders believe that the market is the most viable direction to improve farm animal welfare, economic productivity of the chain remains an issue that on a fundamental level conflicts...
Article
Full-text available
Background The domestic dog is one of the most diverse mammalian species, exhibiting wide variations in morphology, behaviour and morbidity across breeds. Therefore, it is not unexpected that breeds should also exhibit variation in mortality and longevity. While shorter longevity per se may not necessarily be a welfare issue, a generally foreshorte...
Chapter
Full-text available
Population ageing is a challenge for human societies. In the European context Italy appears to be the “oldest country”, as evidenced by all the main demographic indicators of population, which have experienced a growing trend of the oldest age groups since the Seventies. The current state of the Italian population is the result of a development pro...

Citations

... comm. to Meier;Meier 2002;Zhang et al. 2008; D.Q. Rao, pers. ...
... comm.; Blanck and Zhou, pers. obs.) did not provide any evidence of this species, neither was it ever recorded in a market in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province, which was intensely surveyed over the last four decades (Zhang et al. 2008;Petras, pers. comm.;Artner and Strauss, pers. ...
... Historically, the wet market in China can be traced back millennia (Zhu and Zhu, 2020). In a 2004 survey conducted in three wildlife-rich provinces in southwest China (Qinghai, Guangxi and Yunnan), 60% of respondents indicated that they had consumed wildlife in the past two years (Zhang et al., 2008). Besides, Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing, the first Materia Medica book in China (Nugent-Head, 2014), created over two thousand years ago, contains 65 medicinal animals (Zhang, 2013). ...
Article
Full-text available
Due to its abundant biodiversity and active wildlife trade, China's wildlife governance has been in the spotlight, especially following the legislative reforms introduced after the COVID-19 pandemic, hailed as "a turning point for China's wildlife protection". Using Kingdon's framework, we analysed China's evolution of wildlife legislation from 1949 to 2023, focusing on species protected under the Wildlife Protection Law, encompassing mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish and insects. We examined the key drivers behind critical changes in China's approach to wildlife governance, the nature of these legislative changes, and their subsequent impacts. The analysis identifies and describes three historical phases that reflect gradual but key shifts in wildlife governance, notably from one focused on wildlife utilisation and increasingly towards conservation. The recent post-COVID changes, albeit driven by public health concerns, significantly pivot towards stricter conservation practices, aligning with China's philosophical shift towards "ecological civilisation." These shifts uncovered how the key drivers shaped the relevant policy and legislation. This historical analysis offers conservationists and the broader conservation movement a valuable perspective. We suggest these individuals or groups explore the underlying factors and patterns that have influenced the evolution of conservation policy and legislation from a macro-historical scale. Such an understanding can enhance their confidence in lobbying the public and policymakers to support specific conservation proposals, strengthening the likelihood that their proposals can be accepted and translated into actionable policies.
... Meanwhile, the second most dominant species is the Asian Grass Frog, Fejervarya limnocharis, a small to medium-sized frog (2-5 cm) ( Figure 2). Physical features of the Asian Grass Frog include a robust body with patterns of spots or stripes, well-developed limbs, and an eye-catching lightcolored stripe running from the snout to the shoulder [27]. It can be found abundantly in paddy fields or wetlands [27]. ...
... Physical features of the Asian Grass Frog include a robust body with patterns of spots or stripes, well-developed limbs, and an eye-catching lightcolored stripe running from the snout to the shoulder [27]. It can be found abundantly in paddy fields or wetlands [27]. However, this species can also live in marshes, ponds, streams, and urban areas [30]. ...
... The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) currently rates the conservation status of Ptyas korros as Near Threatened. It might be vulnerable to threats like habitat loss, fragmentation, wildlife trade [27] and human persecution because of prejudice and fear [15]. ...
Article
Full-text available
Herpetofauna represents a significant portion of global biodiversity. Understanding their distribution, ecology, and behavior is essential for conservation efforts. Many reptile and amphibian species are threatened or endangered due to habitat loss, pollution, climate change, and disease. A study was conducted to explore the herpetofauna in Tun Razak Agricultural Research Centre from 22 February 2023 to 17 March 2023 through Visual Encounter Survey (VES), covering four types of habitats; ponds, forest, oil palm and residential. A total of 23 species of herpetofauna were recorded, representing 14 amphibians and nine reptiles. Hylarana erythraea emerged as the most dominant species, followed by Fejervarya limnocharis. These species were found abundantly in ponds due to its suitability for breeding and ample food sources. The presence of these species indicates that the ecosystem has various habitat niches. Most of the species found were globally classified as Least Concern. However, the survey also recorded Ophiophagus Hannah and Cuora amboinensis, listed as Vulnerable and Endangered respectively. The study highlighted the importance of clean water in ponds for frog breeding, as it ensures proper oxygenation and minimizes exposure to harmful substances. Furthermore, the study demonstrated the potential of herpetofauna as a bioindicator, with changes in their populations reflecting environmental changes or disturbances. The species rank abundance curves showed that the oil palm habitat exhibited the highest species evenness, suggesting a balanced distribution of species within the ecosystem. However, further surveys are needed in the area to determine the full extent of herpetofauna composition. Overall, the findings emphasise the necessity of preserving various habitats to support herpetofauna populations while also maintaining ecosystem health and balance for human-animal coexistence.
... Our study could pave the way for a more structured and rigorous approach to crafting interventions to reduce the purchase of illegal wildlife products. However, we acknowledge the complicated challenges posed by IWT, especially in sociocultural and governance contexts such as those in China (Zhang et al., 2008). We understand that our strategies, although innovative, may not fully encapsulate the depth of these intricacies (e.g., the problem of corruption, which can greatly affect intervention efficacy [van Uhm & Moreto, 2018]). ...
Article
Full-text available
Illegal poaching and overexploitation for the international pet trade are among the greatest threats to freshwater turtles in Southeast Asia. Expanding consumer research in China is crucial to filling knowledge gaps about the scale and structure of illegal trade and developing audience‐targeted and relevant interventions that may reduce demand for illegal turtles as pets. We applied mixed methods to provide a detailed understanding of the consumer side of the illegal pet turtle trade in China. We conducted 30 interviews with key stakeholders and online surveys (n = 2456) of turtle keepers via community forums. From these, we identified 3 core consumer groups based on their prior turtle‐keeping experience, species exposure, and potential for future purchases. We conducted a thematic qualitative analysis of concepts related to the capability, opportunity, motivation, and behavior (COM‐B) model to determine the factors influencing the illegal pet turtle trade and to identify barriers to illegal purchases. Specifically, we identified purchasers’ capabilities, opportunities, and motivations in the context of legality, enforcement risk, captive breeding, and impacts on wild population. We developed consumer journey maps (i.e., visual representations of customer's experiences throughout their buying journey) for core consumer groups. These maps illustrate the sequential behaviors and processes that consumers undertake when purchasing turtles, from initial exposure to sourcing, keeping, and providing a new home. Key factors influencing illegal purchases included convenient purchase channels, misguided cognition and motivations for pet keeping, and weak law enforcement. Effective interventions included messages focusing on shifting cognition and beliefs, increasing legal risk perception, and emphasizing stringent law enforcement, primarily delivered through online channels. Our results underscore the necessity for adaptable, audience‐tailored interventions to reduce consumer demand for illegal wildlife products. The mixed‐methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data, provided a comprehensive understanding of the target behavior and can inform the development of effective intervention strategies.
... Within this region, threats to songbirds in China are high (Nijman, 2010), with songbird markets in many Chinese cities (Cheng, 2019;Dai & Zhang, 2017;Huo et al., 2009), and widespread songbird hunting and trade (Kamp et al., 2015). However, the dynamics and impacts of these activities remain incompletely understood, with limited baselines on Chinese wildlife hunting, consumption or trade (Cheng, 2019;Liang et al., 2013;Zhang et al., 2008). The Asian songbird crisis has been studied mainly through market surveys, with limited assessment of wild populations (Putri et al., 2021;Sykes, 2017). ...
Article
Full-text available
Designing conservation interventions for rare species can be hindered by a lack of relevant data. Local ecological knowledge (LEK) has potential to provide rapidly collected, cost‐effective data across large spatio‐temporal scales, but has rarely been used as a source of conservation‐relevant information for the Asian Songbird Crisis. The Blue‐crowned Laughingthrush (Pterorhinus courtoisi; BCLT) is a Critically Endangered passerine found only in southeastern China. It is unclear why the species' breeding range and global population are extremely small, as it occurs in human‐occupied forest‐agricultural landscapes similar to surrounding environments across southern China. We conducted systematic range‐wide interviews on BCLT (n = 519) to collect novel information on the species' temporal and spatial distribution, and on potential human activities and landscape changes associated with its presence or absence. Recognition of BCLT was moderate (45.0% of respondents reported sightings), with sightings within the previous 18 months across the study area, within and beyond their known distribution. Over half of known breeding villages were confirmed by LEK data, and nesting was reported from two villages with no previous breeding records. BCLT trapping was reported across the study landscape, mostly from the last decade and associated with trappers from urban centres. BCLT trapping and lack of fengshui forest were associated with sites where BCLTs did not breed. Breeding sites were associated with increases in vegetable gardens over respondents' lifetimes, and other sites within the species' range were associated with decreases in bush/scrub. We demonstrate that LEK can identify potential threats, new breeding sites and landscape changes correlated with species presence or absence for threatened birds affected by the Asian songbird crisis. This study provides the first evidence of ongoing trapping as a threat to BCLT, and remedial measures are urgently required across the region. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
... Our current work represents a significant stride toward a fully automated animal observation system in real-time in-field applications. and the commercial trade of wild animals gradually led to endangered species in southwestern China and surrounding countries [2]. Protecting wildlife is of great significance for sustainable development and is a key concern for China and other countries in the world. ...
Article
Full-text available
Simple Summary In response to the quantitative demand for the practical deployment of applications and the need to enhance the detection accuracy of wildlife in complex field environments in southwest China and neighboring regions, we have refined the wildlife detection algorithm based on re-parameterized convolution. This refinement is specifically targeted at addressing the challenges posed by the low quality of wildlife images captured by camera traps and the limitations of traditional object detection algorithms in feature extraction capability. To address these issues, we have introduced a series of improvement schemes. As a result of these enhancements, there has been a noteworthy improvement in both the accuracy of wildlife detection and the speed of model inference. This advancement offers a convenient and efficient method for the preliminary detection in the context of automated wildlife monitoring. Abstract To autonomously detect wildlife images captured by camera traps on a platform with limited resources and address challenges such as filtering out photos without optimal objects, as well as classifying and localizing species in photos with objects, we introduce a specialized wildlife object detector tailored for camera traps. This detector is developed using a dataset acquired by the Saola Working Group (SWG) through camera traps deployed in Vietnam and Laos. Utilizing the YOLOv6-N object detection algorithm as its foundation, the detector is enhanced by a tailored optimizer for improved model performance. We deliberately introduce asymmetric convolutional branches to enhance the feature characterization capability of the Backbone network. Additionally, we streamline the Neck and use CIoU loss to improve detection performance. For quantitative deployment, we refine the RepOptimizer to train a pure VGG-style network. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed method empowers the model to achieve an 88.3% detection accuracy on the wildlife dataset in this paper. This accuracy is 3.1% higher than YOLOv6-N, and surpasses YOLOv7-T and YOLOv8-N by 5.5% and 2.8%, respectively. The model consistently maintains its detection performance even after quantization to the INT8 precision, achieving an inference speed of only 6.15 ms for a single image on the NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX device. The improvements we introduce excel in tasks related to wildlife image recognition and object localization captured by camera traps, providing practical solutions to enhance wildlife monitoring and facilitate efficient data acquisition. Our current work represents a significant stride toward a fully automated animal observation system in real-time in-field applications.
... Hussain and Khan [8] reported that wildlife has changed its dimension in recent years from subsistence to commercial trade and Southeast Asia is the epicenter of wildlife trade. This results in large quantities of wild animals are now on the brink of extinction, such as Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) and tiger (Panthera tigris) [9,10]. Additionally, Indonesia is one of the countries with a high prevalence of illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade [11]. ...
Article
Full-text available
The Asian region is globally renowned for its unparalleled biodiversity, rich ecosystems, and unique cultural heritage. However, the delicate equilibrium between human societies and the diverse flora and fauna faces increasing challenges due to the region's rich biodiversity and escalating utilization of wildlife resources. Hence, this paper aims to document the utilization of endangered wildlife across Asian countries and to report the existing conservation measures and recommendations for sustainable wildlife management over the years. We employed prominent academic databases, specifically SCOPUS, to explore the dynamics of wildlife utilization and its associated implications. From the findings, 9,989 records were successfully identified. However, only 65 articles were included in the review after the screening process. A total of 61 species, comprising 30 mammals, 22 reptiles, one amphibian, and eight birds, all endangered, were identified as subjects of wildlife utilization in 16 Asian countries. China possessed the highest count for wildlife utilization across all categories, including 15 species used for trading purposes. In conclusion, this research underscores the critical need for integrated approaches that balance human needs and conservation imperatives to ensure a sustainable future for Asia's wildlife biodiversity.
... These factors may uncover previously overlooked (or newly created) links determining occurrence of target species in a given area. For instance, economic inequality (poverty, as well as wealth and elitism) and unemployment can lead to illegal harvesting of natural resources and illegal killing or collection of rare species (Bouriaud, 2005;Gault et al., 2008;Zhang et al., 2008;van Vliet and Mbazza, 2011;Tournant et al., 2012;Parry et al., 2014;Stirnemann et al., 2018;Lunstrum and Givá, 2020;Soofi et al., 2022), while higher education and environmental awareness of citizens may be associated with nature promotion (e.g. bat or bird nest boxes, supplementary feeding) and tolerance for wildlife (Lepczyk et al., 2012;Goddard et al., 2013;Kimmig et al., 2020). ...
Article
In an era marked by increasing anthropogenic pressure, understanding the relations between human activities and wildlife is crucial for understanding ecological patterns, effective conservation, and management strategies. Here, we explore the potential and usefulness of socio-economic variables in species distribution modelling (SDM), focusing on their impact on the occurrence of wild mammals in Poland. Beyond the environmental factors commonly considered in SDM, like land-use, the study tests the importance of socio-economic characteristics of local human societies, such as age, income, working sector, gender, education, and village characteristics for explaining distribution of diverse mammalian groups, including carnivores, ungulates, rodents, soricids, and bats. The study revealed that incorporating socio-economic variables enhances the predictive power for >60 % of species and overall for most groups, with the exception being carnivores. For all the species combined, among the 10 predictors with highest predictive power, 6 belong to socio-economic group, while for specific species groups, socio-economic variables had similar predictive power as environmental variables. Furthermore, spatial predictions of species occurrence underwent changes when socio-economic variables were included in the model, resulting in a substantial mismatch in spatial predictions of species occurrence between environment-only models and models containing socio-economic variables. We conclude that socio-economic data has potential as useful predictors which increase prediction accuracy of wildlife occurrence and recommend its wider usage. Further, to our knowledge this is a first study on such a big scale for terrestrial mammals which evaluates performance based on presence or absence of socio-economic predictors in the model. We recognise the need for a more comprehensive approach in SDMs and that bridging the gap between human socio-economic dynamics and ecological processes may contribute to the understanding of the factors influencing biodiversity.
... Before the realization that there was a bushmeat crisis in the late 1990s, there was limited acknowledgment that the consumption of wildlife in urban areas may be a conservation issue (but see 20). However, a string of literature since that time has shown clearly that, although per capita consumption of wild meat in urban areas is generally low, the aggregate biomass of wild animals consumed can be high in many parts of the tropics (96,100,190). Large urban populations can support very long-distance wild meat trade (e.g., of caiman in Amazonia) (114). ...
Article
Full-text available
Several hundred species are hunted for wild meat in the tropics, supporting the diets, customs, and livelihoods of millions of people. However, unsustainable hunting is one of the most urgent threats to wildlife and ecosystems worldwide and has serious ramifications for people whose subsistence and income are tied to wild meat. Over the past 18 years, although research efforts have increased, scientific knowledge has largely not translated into action. One major barrier to progress has been insufficient monitoring and evaluation, meaning that the effectiveness of interventions cannot be ascertained. Emerging issues include the difficulty of designing regulatory frameworks that disentangle the different purposes of hunting, the large scale of urban consumption, and the implications of wild meat consumption for human health. To address these intractable challenges, we 222 Ingram et al. Annu. Rev. Environ. Resour. 2021.46:221-254. Downloaded from www.annualreviews.org Access provided by 67.86.227.218 on 02/09/24. See copyright for approved use. propose eight new recommendations for research and action for sustainable wild meat use, which would support the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
... Consumer demand is recognized as a significant driver behind the illicit trade and excessive hunting of wildlife [15,16]. Consequently, demand reduction has emerged as an important strategy for species conservation [17,18]. Indeed, effectively managing the demand side has become a focal point in the wildlife conservation discourse [19,20]. ...
Article
Full-text available
The unsustainable demand for wildlife and its derivatives poses a threat to global biodiversity , requiring attention and intervention. This study investigates the intent to purchase medicines containing saiga antelope horn among respondents in China. Drawing on an expanded theoretical framework rooted in a planned behavior model, and analyzing 576 valid data points collected through online research, this paper employs a structural equation model to consider influencing factors across six dimensions: attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, consumption experience, protective cognitive level, and personal characteristics. The findings reveal that 31.25% of respondents harbor a positive purchase intention toward medicines containing saiga antelope horn. Additionally, attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and consumption experience exhibit positive associations with the purchase intention, while the protective cognitive level demonstrates a negative impact. A significant gender gap was identified, with women displaying a greater inclination to purchase compared to men. To support the global conservation efforts of the saiga antelope, this paper advocates for strategic interventions. Recommendations include reinforcing public science education, fostering awareness, advancing the research and development of alternative medicines, strengthening internal market controls, and employing targeted marketing strategies to shift consumer preferences. These measures collectively contribute to a holistic approach aimed at reducing the demand for wildlife products and safeguarding the saiga antelope population.