From trophies to traditional medicine, the illegal trade in bear parts is driving some iconic species to extinction—and New Zealand is one destination in the $2 billion global market for smuggled bear products. In the ten years to 2018, New Zealand authorities made 412 seizures of smuggled bear parts and bear-derived products. More than 80 per cent of the seizures related to traditional medicines—often bear bile or gall bladder extract—but some also included bear parts and trophies.
More by Ellen Rykers