The environmental impacts of the exotic pet trade are devastating and, in many cases, irreversible. Removing animals from their natural habitat can have a detrimental effect not just on their native ecosystems but also on the natural environments to which they are transported.
Lack of regulation and enforcement means that taking animals from the wild for the exotic pet trade is largely a ‘free-for-all’. Legal restrictions that do exist for a small proportion of species in trade are formulated by assessing the wild populations of those species. No account is taken, however, of the wider impact of removing animals from the wild, such as the disruption of food chains and effects on delicate ecosystems. For instance, many types of animals play a vital role as seed dispersers – these are mainly mammals and birds but also fruit-eating reptiles and amphibians.
Destructive capture methods can damage the environment. For instance, the majority of fish in the marine aquaria trade are taken from coral reefs. Fishing methods include the use of cyanide to temporarily stun the fish and allow them to be easily caught. It is estimated that for every fish captured using cyanide, one square metre of coral dies.
Reptile collectors can use crowbars and hydraulic jacks in order to break apart rocks to capture lizards. Such permanent damage to habitat can have a lasting impact on entire populations of lizards, as well as on other species such as small mammals and amphibians.
Exotic pets are, by definition, alien to the ecology of the country in which they are sold. When some exotic pet species escape, or are deliberately released, they can establish wild populations and cause serious problems. Such species are described as invasive alien species (IAS). Where they lack natural predators, populations of IAS can quickly spread, out-compete native species and alter food chains – ultimately they can reduce the biodiversity of an area.
The exotic pet trade plays a major role in the introduction of IAS. Several species have been banned from the pet trade including the Siberian chipmunk, raccoon, red-eared terrapin and American bullfrog. There are, however, many more species in the pet trade that have the potential to become invasive alien species.
Diseases carried by exotic pets can infect indigenous wildlife, captive and domesticated animals and there are many examples of this. The spread of highly infectious psittacine beak and feather disease, which affects both wild and captive birds, has been linked to the international trade in pet parrots. The importation of African tortoises carrying ticks has caused the, often fatal, heartwater disease in cattle.
The most notable example, however, is the disease, chytridiomycosis. This infectious fungal disease has been spread around the globe with the help of the pet trade and has caused the decline or extinction of hundreds of amphibian species.
* Top banner image: The North American raccoon (Procyon lotor) is classed as an invasive alien species and is banned from the pet trade.