At the Belén market in the northeastern Peruvian city of Iquitos, monkeys illegally caught in the Amazon rainforest are sold as pets along with crops and vegetables. Primates are kept in cramped cages and in close contact with other animals, people, and waste, ideal situations for contracting and spreading disease.
But markets like Bethlehem’s are just the beginning, according to a recent article published in PLOS ONE. The monkeys continue to transmit viruses, parasites, and bacteria along the way, even as they reach their final destination in homes, rescue centers, and zoos if they are seized through local authorities.
Scientists estimate that thousands of primates are captured and trafficked each year in Peru. While some are traded for food, items, and medicine, the most are sold alive and as pets. According to a recent survey conducted by World Animal Protection, 40% of Peruvians living in cities admitted to buying wild animals as pets.
The most trafficked species are marmosets (of the genera Saguinus and Leontocebus) and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri), which sell for as little as $10. At the other end of the scale, species such as Goeldi’s monkey (Callimico goeldii) are sought. on the foreign black market and can charge up to $900.
For this recent study, researchers analyzed 388 illegally trafficked monkeys in nine Peruvian cities and discovered a total of 32 pathogens in their blood, saliva, and feces samples. These pathogens included mycobacteria, which cause tuberculosis, and parasites, which cause Chagas disease, malaria, and gastrointestinal ailments. Together, these diseases kill more than 1. 4 million people each year worldwide.
“When we bring wild animals into cities and put them in captivity, we introduce pathogens,” said the study’s lead author, Patricia Mendoza, who led the study as part of USAID’s PREDICT Emerging Pandemic Treats program in Peru, and recently a researcher in Anthropology Component at Washington University in St. Louis. Louis and the conservation of neotropical primates. ” We’re not just worried about new viruses like COVID-19. Many known infectious diseases can be transmitted smoothly through animal trafficking.
The monkeys tested at street markets still carried hemoparasites discovered in the Amazon rainforest, in addition to the parasite that causes malaria. However, when the monkeys were moved to other smuggling sites, they acquired other pathogens, such as the antibiotic-resistant Shigella sonnei bacteria. which can cause bloody diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain in humans.
Along the trafficking route, humans exposed to those animals were under constant threat of infection. “In those markets, thousands of people circulate and the threat of transmission is high,” Mendoza told Mongabay. “But in homes, other people sleep [with him], hugging and kissing monkeys. One-on-one contact is very close, which puts those families at risk.
Even zoos and rescue centers, where primates are taken when confiscated by local authorities, are not immune to contamination. “They do everything they can to keep the animals healthy and well cared for. But infections are common, no matter how much emphasis is placed. “it’s focused on detecting pests,” Mendoza said.
Although the researchers tested birds and turtles first, monkeys have proven to be a particularly harmful route of transmission. They are among the most trafficked animals in Peru and their DNA is on average 96% the same as that of humans. This makes them more maximum. Probably more than other animals to spread diseases that can affect humans.
Scientists say wildlife traffickers and their families are at the highest risk of contracting diseases caused by trafficked monkeys. They are bitten, scratched, and exposed to animal feces. A similar transmission trend has been discovered in highly interacting hunters in the Peruvian Amazon. with wildlife.
However, inflamed primates can spread the disease more widely. They bring parasites that mosquitoes can catch and into the surrounding community. Yellow fever, cutaneous leishmaniasis, and even new strains of malaria are transmitted.
“It’s a public health issue,” said Alessandra Nava, a researcher at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazil’s leading public health research institute. “The illegal industry forces animals to live beyond their range, where they introduce a reservoir of new viruses, bacteria and parasites. “
The threat of mosquito transmission is accelerating due to climate change. As temperatures rise, mosquitoes move to new areas, become more active, and incubate more diseases. In Peru alone, the mosquito population has skyrocketed in recent years, fueling an alarming spread of dengue. fever.
The exchange of pathogens with humans also threatens monkeys involved in the illegal trade in puppies. New diseases may affect species already threatened by hunting and habitat loss, such as the Goeldi monkey, classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
If inflamed primates are reintroduced into the wild, it is also conceivable that they will transmit these diseases to other species.
Wildlife trafficking harms primates in many ways.
“When those animals are captured in the Amazon rainforest, they experience a lot of suffering and stress,” said Roberto Vieto, global animal welfare advisor at World Animal Protection. “Sometimes hunters kill parents in search of the most desirable young children along the way. puppy market, and the strategies used to kill them are incredibly cruel. “
Once abducted, the monkeys make long journeys in small boxes or cages to avoid detection by local authorities. Some cross the border into Ecuador and Bolivia and are then smuggled to Europe, China and the United States. “A lot of people don’t have the adventure and the muerte. la rate is high,” Vieto told Mongabay.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, environmentalists expected a slowdown in Peruvian industry. Many street markets closed or scaled back their operations, and vendors became wary of Array’s open sale. However, the pause didn’t last,” said Vieto, who worked on WAP’s 2021 report “Risky Business: How Peru’s Wildlife Markets Are Endangering Animals and People. “
Vieto said he hoped that a new law would stop this illegal activity anyway. Since November 2022, animal trafficking has been covered by the Organized Crime Act, with harsher penalties. “We’re already seeing the government pay more attention,” Vieto said. “But we want to do more to help others involved in trafficking have sustainable livelihoods that don’t rely on harming wildlife.
Quote:
Mendoza, A. P. , Muñoz-Maceda, A. , Ghersi, B. M. , De La Puente, M. , Zariquiey, C. , Cavero, N. ,. . . Rosenbaum, M. H. (2024). Diversity and zoonotic infections at the animal-human interface of primate trafficking in Peru. PLOS ONE, 19(2), e0287893. is what I:10. 1371/journal. pone. 0287893
Banner image: Trafficked primates carry viruses, parasites, and bacteria along the trafficking journey. Image courtesy of Patricia Mendoza/Neotropical Primate Conservation–Peru.
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