Pangolins are under threat primarily from over-exploitation as a result of poaching and illicit trade. Pangolin meat is considered to be a luxury product in parts of China and Vietnam, and they are hunted for bushmeat in Africa. Their scales, blood, and fetuses are used in traditional medicine in China and Africa to treat skin conditions and liver function, improve blood circulation, increase fertility, and address other ailments (despite an absence of scientific evidence to back the alleged medicinal benefits).

When threatened, a pangolin rolls into a ball by wrapping the tail completely around the body as protection against predators, such as lions and other big cats. The sad irony is that the pangolin’s only defense mechanism actually makes it easier for the pangolin’s top predator – humans – to simply pick the animal up. (Similar to skunks, pangolins can secrete a foul smelling odor from the glands near their anus, which they use to mark their territory. Unlike skunks, however, they are not able to spray the odor; the foul smelling acid is used as a deterrent from predators rather than as a defense.)

The Asian species are largely threatened by illegal hunting and trade – and the population decline of Asian pangolins is believed to have led to the African species coming under increasing threat from intercontinental trade, too. Adding to this threat are the growing economic ties between Africa and Asia, and the increasing profitability of the trade in pangolins. The African species are also threatened from hunting due to their consumption in west, central, and southern Africa.

• Born Free USA staff attended the first International Scientific Conference on Pangolin Conservation, Trade, and Rehabilitation in South Africa. Conference participants included delegates, academics, field biologists, students, and nongovernmental organization representatives, and attendees presented on pangolin ecology, biology, trade, threats, habitat range, and rehabilitation. View our poster presentation about the illegal trade of pangolins in Asia.

Ironically, in order for pangolins to survive the threats that have been caused by humans, humans must then enact laws to protect them. However, the laws that do exist have been largely ineffective and weakly enforced.

In July 2015, Born Free USA and other wildlife organizations petitioned the U.S. government to designate seven species of pangolins as Endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) to prohibit the import and interstate sale of all pangolins and pangolin parts in the U.S. In response to this petition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced on March 15, 2016 that Endangered Species Act protections may be warranted for seven pangolin species. However, as of 2018, only one species of pangolin (the Temminck’s ground pangolin) is listed as Endangered under the ESA.

• Read the petition.
• Learn more about Born Free USA’s efforts to increase protection for pangolins under the ESA.
• Learn more about the ESA.

Pangolin habitat is being encroached upon and destroyed by humans, largely due to expanding agricultural production. This destruction contributes to pangolin population declines.