Marketing wildlife

Two main types of trade in turtles occur in Asia. One is a high-volume, commodity-type trade in turtles or turtle parts for consumption; the other is the pet trade, which involves smaller numbers of animals, and often smaller animals, with high individual value. From a conservation perspective, the consumption trade can be further divided into the trade in commercially farmed turtles and the trade in turtles captured from nature. Each of these trade segments gives cause for concern, but the mass exploitation of wild-caught turtles for consumption is the more significant.