Authorities at Turkey’s Istanbul Airport have intercepted an endangered baby gorilla in a container, being smuggled from Nigeria and to Bangkok.
The Customs Enforcement Smuggling and Intelligence Directorate at Istanbul Airport tracked a cage-type cargo shipment as part of risk analysis efforts, aimed at protecting wildlife and natural habitats, according to the Daily Sabah on December 22.
Upon inspection, the team discovered that the cage contained a "western gorilla," a species listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), indicating that it is critically endangered.
These great apes are threatened with extinction and their international trade is permitted only under exceptional circumstances, such as for scientific research.
Appendix I includes species like the western lowland gorilla, highlighting the urgent need to protect them from exploitation and ensure that trade does not contribute to the further decline of these vulnerable populations.
The baby gorilla has been handed over to the Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Ministry.
The latest updates state that the ape, now under observation, appears to be in better condition than when it was first discovered in the container. Native to Africa, reports indicate that Nigeria had only about 100 gorillas left last year.
Edwin Wiek, of the Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, is urging the National Parks and Wildlife Department and Green Cops to investigate the matter and to identify the smugglers attempting to traffic the animal into Thailand.
"The young gorilla may have been destined for another country," he said, adding that the price for such an animal could reach Bt2-3 million.
According to Wiek, several orangutans were smuggled into Thailand earlier this month from Indonesia and he emphasised that Thai police should focus on identifying the major players in the smuggling networks, rather than targeting low-level offenders.
