Mark Auliya

• Doctor of Philosophy
• PostDoc Position at The Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig

The commercial wildlife trade involves billions of animals each year, consumed for various purposes, including food, fashion, entertainment, traditional medicine, and pets. The experiences of the animals involved vary widely, with negative welfare states being commonplace. To highlight the broad scope of animal welfare impacts across the commercial...

We highlight the smuggling of Galápagos iguanas in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Pacific region. Wild caught Galapagos iguanas are laundered into international trade declared as captive-bred. The offspring of such animals receive CITES permits in violation of CITES regulations. We urge CITES Parties to transfer all four species of Galápagos iguanas...

Local and illegal exploitation of wildlife is particularly widespread in highly populated and bio-diverse countries such as India. In such countries, illicit utilization practices and how these are perceived among local communities are commonly not well-documented. Due to a lack of data, and environmental education measures to protect ecosystems an...

In 2008, a large individual of Malaysian giant turtle, Orlitia borneensis was observed at a market in Ipoh, Perak, West Malaysia. The curved carapace length (CCL) of the individual measured 85 cm. Another individual was rescued in Pahang in the 1980s and is currently maintained at a conservation centre in Kuala Berang, Terengganu, with a CCL of 86....

A subadult individual of Eutropis fasciata from West Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) revealed reduced phalanges and lacking claws.

Marine elapid snakes are a diverse, predominantly Indo‐West Pacific species group. The persistent removal of some species has an unquantified but potentially dire impact on populations. We conducted the first comprehensive review of the trade in marine elapid snakes based on published literature (1974–2022) and trade data from the only species (i.e...

Local and illegal exploitation of wildlife is particularly widespread in highly-populated and bio-diverse countries such as India. In such countries, illicit utilization practices and how these are perceived among local communities are commonly not well-documented. Due to a lack of data and environmental education measures to protect ecosystems and...

The unsustainable utilization and exploitation of natural resources, especially wildlife, pose a significant threat to global biodiversity. This issue is particularly pronounced in densely populated countries endowed with rich biodiversity, such as India. In response to this pressing concern, the SSC Monitor Lizard Specialist Group took proactive s...

Exploitation of wildlife represents one of the greatest threats to species survival according to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Whilst detrimental impacts of illegal trade are well recognised, legal trade is often equated to being sustainable despite the lack of evidence or data in the majority...

The commercial trade in frogs and their body parts is global, dynamic and occurs in extremely large volumes (in the thousands of tonnes/yr or billions of frogs/yr). The European Union (EU) remains the single largest importer of frogs’ legs, with most frogs still caught from the wild. Amongst the many drivers of species extinction or population decl...

The loss of biodiversity due to overexploitation is well known, but a review and regulation of species used in the frogs’ legs trade has yet to be accomplished. This problem relates to supply (the capture and trade of wild populations) and demand (the main consumer being the EU). The EU’s responsibility should not be ignored, since unsustainable im...

Exploitation of wildlife represents one of the greatest threats to species survival according to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Whilst detrimental impacts of illegal trade are well recognised, legal trade is often equated to being sustainable despite the lack of evidence or data in the majority...

Ball pythons are traded as bushmeat, leather and belief-based medicine in West Africa, and specimens are exported in large numbers for the exotic pet trade. Here, we focused on understanding the purpose and socio-economic context of this trade in Benin through interviews with 44 actors involved in the trade of this species. We provided a snapshot o...

The commercial trade in frogs and their body parts is global, dynamic, and occurs in extremely large volumes (in the thousands of tonnes/yr or billions of frogs/yr). The European Union remains the single largest importer of frogs’ legs, with most frogs still caught from the wild. Among the many drivers of species extinction or population decline (e...

According to EUROSTAT (the European statistics database) the EU has been importing about 40,700 tonnes of frogs’ legs within the period 2011-2020, which correlates with 814 million to 2 billion frogs. Most of these animals are still caught from the wild. The report analysis the impact on wild frog populations in the supplying countries (e.g. Indone...

Comprehensive assessments of species’ extinction risks have documented the extinction crisis and underpinned strategies for reducing those risks. Global assessments reveal that, among tetrapods, 40.7% of amphibians, 25.4% of mammals and 13.6% of birds are threatened with extinction. Because global assessments have been lacking, reptiles have been o...

Comprehensive assessments of species’ extinction risks have documented the extinction crisis and underpinned strategies for reducing those risks. Global assessments reveal that, among tetrapods, 40.7% of amphibians, 25.4% of mammals and 13.6% of birds are threatened with extinction. Because global assessments have been lacking, reptiles have been o...

IUCn Red List assessment

IUCN Red List Assessment

IUCN Red List assessment

available at https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/178214/113138439

available at https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/83778217/83778221

available at https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/200972722/1533318

available at https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/83779000/83779029

The global trade in wildlife affects most major taxonomic groups (Fukushima et al., 2020; Scheffers et al., 2019). Managing wildlife trade requires an accurate understanding of the dimensions of trade and its impacts (positive, neutral, or negative) on the conservation of native wildlife populations. We are concerned that assertions made by Natusch...

Pangolins are considered among the most threatened mammal species, both globally and also in Africa. However, almost nothing is known on their status and distribution across wide areas of their range, particularly in West African countries. Here we assess the status and distribution of pangolin species in Togo. Fieldwork was carried out in five loc...

Exotic pet supply is a key, predominantly legal, component of global wildlife trade, but few studies have quantified its diversity or global reach. Here, using information extracted from the public (open) Facebook accounts of two wildlife exporters in Togo, West Africa, we identified at least 200 species, predominantly reptiles, but also mammals, b...

For the first time in Togo, we used camera trapping to investigate the mammal community in Fazao‐Malfakassa National Park (FMNP), a forest and savannah mosaic landscape subject to poaching and other detrimental anthropogenic activity. We compiled a species inventory, that is species occurrence, habitat use and activity patterns during dry and wet s...

Over 1.2 million wild-sourced African Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus) have reportedly been traded internationally since the 1970s, the majority of which were taken from the wild with serious implications for conservation, animal welfare, and biosecurity. While international trade has mostly been for the pet trade, in some West African countries,...

Activities and Goals of the IUCN SSC Monitor Lizard Specialist Group in 2018 are described.

The ball python ( Python regius ) is the most traded, CITES listed, live animal exported from Africa. Recent studies have raised concerns as to whether production methods in Africa are sustainable, humane and compliant with legislation. To aid future management we explored export patterns, using the CITES and U.S. LEMIS database, for live ball pyth...

Our review of the CITES trade database confirmed that the ball python is the most exported species by Togo; with 1,657,814 live individuals-comprising 60% of all live reptiles-reported by importing countries since 1978 (almost 55,000 annually since 1992). In total, 99% of the ball pythons legally exported from Togo under CITES were intended for com...

Die Familie der Warane (Varanidae) ist eine weltweit besonders stark gehandelte Reptiliengruppe, deren internationaler Handel durch das Washingtoner Artenschutzübereinkommen (CITES) geregelt wird. Derzeit sind 81 Waranarten (Stand 30.09.2019) beschrieben, die in unterschiedlichem Maße gehandelt werden und sich außerdem in Gefährdungs- und Schutzsta...

Among reptiles, monitor lizards (Varanidae) are particularly relevant for the international trade, which is regulated by CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. To date, 82 species of monitor lizards are scientifically described, which vary in relevance for trade and differ in conservation and pro...

Captive reptiles are routinely identified as reservoirs of pathogenic bacteria and reports of reptile-associated infections relating to some species are well documented (e.g., salmonellosis). Currently, relatively little is known about the epidemiology and bacteria of ball pythons. We carried out a survey of ball python farms in Togo, West Africa t...

Traditional medicine beliefs are culturally important in some West African communities, where there is a thriving domestic consumer demand for wild animal derivatives. Yet, such practices can threaten the conservation of wild populations and negatively impact animal welfare. To identify those species most likely to be affected, we investigated wild...

The ball python ( Python regius ) is the single most exported live CITES-listed species from Africa, with a large proportion of snakes being sourced from Togo, West Africa, officially via a system reported nationally as “ranching”. This study represents the first in-depth review of ball python hunting being carried out by rural communities in Togo...

The ball python ( Python regius ) is the world’s most commonly traded python species for the “exotic” pet industry. The majority of these live snakes are produced via a number of python farms in West Africa that have been in operation since the 1960s and involved with “ranching” operations since the 1990s. However, to date no thorough taxonomic rev...

Simple Summary Ball pythons (family Pythonidae) are a relatively small species of snake found in west and central Africa. They are popular across the world as exotic pets, particularly in Europe and North America. Snakes are wild animals (i.e., non-domesticated) and have specific requirements for captive living. If they are housed in unsuitable con...

Extensive numbers of Ball pythons are caught, bred, traded and subsequently kept in captivity across the world as part of the exotic pet industry. Despite their widespread availability as pets, relatively little is known about the potential welfare challenges affecting them. We reviewed the literature for research focused on the health and welfare...

Several awareness workshops were jointly organized by the Environment, Agriculture and Education Society (EAES) along with the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Species Survival Commission's (SSC) Monitor Lizard Specialist Group (MLSG) in five districts of West Bengal, India from 29 July to 2 August 2019. T...

Activities and Goals of the IUCN SSC Monitor Lizard Specialist Group 2016 and 2017 are described.

Globally, there is an extensive trade in snakes for pets, especially in the European and North American markets. This trade includes many African snakes, but few of these are present on CITES appendices, suggesting little regulation of this international trade. In this study, we assess the status of this unregulated trade, by analyzing export lists...

As an important economic natural resource in Southeast Asia, reticulated pythons (Malayopython reticulatus ssp.) are primarily harvested from the wild for their skins—which are prized in the luxury leather goods industry. Trade dynamics of this CITES Appendix II listed species are complex and management approaches on the country or regional level a...

Details of samples included in this study. The table contains information about samples included in this study along with the corresponding haplotypes inferred from sequence variation across a mitochondrial cytochrome b fragment. (PDF)

including many rare and illegally traded species, is highlighted in a recent study. The researchers call for better enforcement and tighter legislation to control the trade, which is a major threat to global biodiversity. In particular the researchers appeal for legislation to be passed for species protected in their native range countries, which c...

The global amphibian trade is suspected to have brought several species to the brink of extinction, and has led to the spread of amphibian pathogens. Moreover, international trade is not regulated for ~98 % of species. Here we outline patterns and complexity underlying global amphibian trade, highlighting some loopholes that need to be addressed, f...

Oil palm plantations have expanded rapidly in recent decades. This large-scale land-use change has had great ecological, economic, and social impacts on both the areas converted to oil palm and their surroundings. However, research on the impacts of oil palm cultivation is scattered and patchy, and no clear overview exists. We address this gap thro...

Of the 10,272 currently recognized reptile species, fewer than 8% are regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the European Wildlife Trade Regulations (EWTR). However, The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List has assessed 45% of the world’s reptile species...

The Asiatic Softshell Turtle, Amyda cartilaginea (Family Trionychidae), is a large species (total carapace length up to 850 mm) showing considerable variation in coloration over its wide range in tropical Southeast Asia. A recent genetic analysis suggests A. cartilaginea may be a species complex consisting of three species level clades with several...

For what does biodiversity stand and how is it measured? [In German with an English abstract]

We update an earlier review (Mertens 1959) of the monitor lizards of Southeast Asia and the Indo-Australian Archipelago, emphasizing the importance of this island region as a center of varanid diversity and endemism. Currently, 44 monitor lizard species (i.e., 60% of the known global varanid diversity) are recognized from this vast study region. Ne...

Effective and targeted conservation action requires detailed information about species, their distribution, systematics and ecology as well as the distribution of threat processes which affect them. Knowledge of reptilian diversity remains surprisingly disparate, and innovative means of gaining rapid insight into the status of reptiles are needed i...

An annotated checklist of amphibians and reptiles from the Bijagós archipelago (Guinea-Bissau) with comments on the species' distribution, systematics and natural history traits is presented here for the first time. During two field surveys 13 anurans and 17 reptile species were recorded from the archipelago of which several species represent eithe...

The following paper presents the first published record of the cryptic Borneo Earless Monitor (Lanthanotus borneensis Steindachner, 1877) from West Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). This sole member of the family Lanthanotidae is endemic to Borneo. Since its description in 1877, all locality records of specimens refer to Sarawak (Malaysian Borneo). T...

Envenoming by some species of cobras (Naja species) may include cardiotoxic effects including various dysrhythmias. However, dysrhythmias leading specifically to ventricular bigeminy have not been previously documented. We report a case of cardiotoxicity and the development of ventricular bigeminy following a cobra envenomation. The patient was a 2...