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Diversity
Volume 13
Issue 6
10.3390/d13060236
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Article

Monitoring the Trade of Legally Protected Wildlife on Facebook and Instagram Illustrated by the Advertising and Sale of Apes in Indonesia

by
Vincent Nijman
1,*,
Jaima H. Smith
1,
Grace Foreman
1,
Marco Campera
1,2,*,
Kim Feddema
3 and
K. A. I. Nekaris
1,2
1
Oxford Wildlife Trade Research Group, School of Social Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK
2
Little Fireface Project, Cisurupan, West Java 40131, Indonesia
3
Business School, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Diversity 2021, 13(6), 236; https://doi.org/10.3390/d13060236
Submission received: 28 April 2021 / Revised: 11 May 2021 / Accepted: 12 May 2021 / Published: 29 May 2021
(This article belongs to the Section Biodiversity Conservation)
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Abstract

Apes continue to be trafficked to meet the demand for pets or zoos. Indonesia, the most diverse country in terms of ape species, has been implicated in the global trade in gibbons, orangutans and, to a lesser degree, chimpanzees. Recently trade has shifted to online platforms, a trend that may have been amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic and partial lockdowns. We assessed the availability of legally protected apes for sale on Facebook and Instagram over two 16-months periods (2017–2018 and 2020–2021). Despite Facebook and Instagram explicitly banning the sale of endangered animals, and Facebook not allowing the sale of live animals, we found 106 gibbons, 17 orangutans and four chimpanzees for sale on five Facebook pages and 19 Instagram accounts. All orangutans and chimpanzees and 70% of the gibbons were infants or juveniles. We did not record any obvious responses of vendors to the Covid-19 pandemic. Facebook and Instagram accounts were linked (similar names, cross-referencing each other and announcing new accounts on existing ones), names were altered (e.g., “petshop” to “pethsop”) and new vendors emerged for short periods. Facebook and Instagram’s policy of not allowing the sale of live and/or endangered wildlife on their platforms is not effectively implemented in Indonesia.
Keywords: chimpanzee; conservation; Covid-19; gorilla; primate diversity; orangutan; social media; wildlife trade chimpanzee; conservation; Covid-19; gorilla; primate diversity; orangutan; social media; wildlife trade
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MDPI and ACS Style

Nijman, V.; Smith, J.H.; Foreman, G.; Campera, M.; Feddema, K.; Nekaris, K.A.I. Monitoring the Trade of Legally Protected Wildlife on Facebook and Instagram Illustrated by the Advertising and Sale of Apes in Indonesia. Diversity 2021, 13, 236. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13060236

AMA Style

Nijman V, Smith JH, Foreman G, Campera M, Feddema K, Nekaris KAI. Monitoring the Trade of Legally Protected Wildlife on Facebook and Instagram Illustrated by the Advertising and Sale of Apes in Indonesia. Diversity. 2021; 13(6):236. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13060236

Chicago/Turabian Style

Nijman, Vincent, Jaima H. Smith, Grace Foreman, Marco Campera, Kim Feddema, and K. A. I. Nekaris. 2021. "Monitoring the Trade of Legally Protected Wildlife on Facebook and Instagram Illustrated by the Advertising and Sale of Apes in Indonesia" Diversity 13, no. 6: 236. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13060236

APA Style

Nijman, V., Smith, J. H., Foreman, G., Campera, M., Feddema, K., & Nekaris, K. A. I. (2021). Monitoring the Trade of Legally Protected Wildlife on Facebook and Instagram Illustrated by the Advertising and Sale of Apes in Indonesia. Diversity, 13(6), 236. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13060236

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