posted by Catherine on Apr 5
We continue on with more ‘not to buy’ souvenirs below - including endangered sealife and caviar.
Tortoiseshell Products:
Now, even I didn’t know that this ‘name’ was actually representing turtle shells! I just used to think it was the name of the ‘print’ or ‘design’, but real tortoiseshell products are generally derived from marine turtle shells - mainly the Hawksbill turtle: critically endangered since 1973!
It was mainly found as accessories like sunglasses and hair clips, which were very common in tourist resorts, hotels and airports. A man-made alternative was developed - but still buy with care - or not at all! Unfortunately, unless they are clearly made of plastic such products should be avoided to be sure they are not affecting wild populations of turtles.
Seahorses:
These can be brought dried or alive - but obviously neither is recommended!
Import and export of all seahorses is controlled by CITES under Appendix II, although Indonesis, Japan, Norway and South Korea have opted out of these trade rules!
Captive-bred seahorses are now becoming popular as wild caught specimens usually don’t live very long once captured. This obviously lowers the threats to wild populations, but should be thoroughly checked before purchase to make sure of their true origins.
Corals:
The colors and shapes of corals have attracted buyers for years, although obviously has been taking it’s toll on marine environments.
Corals are very slow-growing and damage to a reef can take decades to recover - that is why diving guidelines have been changing to help prevent further damage.
Islands like the Maldives have ‘coral sand’ which is made up of dead and eroded coral and sometimes contains large chunks or material - however this coral is what makes the beach! If coral offshore is destroyed for sale and large pieces of dead coral are collected from the beaches - there will be nothing left to protect the islands from eroding away!
Coral reefs are extremely diverse marine ecosystems - home to a whole host of exotic marine fish that can suvive nowhere else - so destrying their home will be destroying their chances of survival.
Seashells:
Mainly for the same reason as above - the discarded sea shells make up the beaches in most tropical destinations, helping to create the ’sandy’ beaches and protect the land.
Depending on the shell type it is also possible that the live creature was captured and killed to alow the shell to be cleaned and polished for tourists to buy - not a good thing!
Also, many shells are used as homes for hermit crabs, and the more shells we take of of beaches, means that competition for new homes becomes fierce and ‘homeless’ crabs will be unprotected and likely prey.
Caviar:
A more unusual problem as it is not to everyones taste, but never-the-less sturgeon populations are in dramatic decline due to over-fishing and illegal fishing activities.
Since 1995, one species of sturgeon in Europe has been reduced by 40%, and around 12 tonnes of illegal caviar were seized in the European Union alone. Governing bodies are working with CITES to create a labelling system to identify legal caviar.
Things aren’t always so easy to identify, so just think twice about your purchase.
Join us for Part 3 next - which covers live animals and animal parts…..
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