Holiday shopping with wildlife in mind

The guide advises consumers to avoid purchasing items made from endangered species, such as beluga caviar, ivory, rhino horn, shahtoosh, pangolin and sea turtle leather, big cat furs, and tortoiseshell. It highlights the illegal nature of these trades and the ecological threats they pose, including the extinction of the Caspian Sea beluga sturgeon and the poaching of over 1 million pangolins over a decade. For certain items like exotic pets, coral, crocodile leather, and rare succulents, the guide recommends extreme caution, urging buyers to verify legality, permits, and sustainable sourcing to avoid supporting illegal wild-harvesting in regions such as Mexico and South Africa.

• Certain luxury and fashion items are linked to severe wildlife threats: beluga sturgeon in the Caspian Sea face extinction due to illegal roe plunder, and the illegal ivory market is a primary threat to elephants, especially in West and Central Africa.
• The illegal trade of specific animal skins and furs is devastating populations; pangolins are the world's most trafficked mammal with over 1 million poached in 10 years, and cheetahs now occupy only 10% of their historic range across Africa.
• Consumers are warned against shahtoosh products, which are made from the endangered Tibetan antelope by poachers who shoot the animals rather than shearing them.
• Marine wildlife is threatened by the trade of tortoiseshell and coral; leatherback turtles in the Pacific and green turtles in the Mediterranean are in decline, while red coral in the Mediterranean became locally extinct due to overharvesting.
• The trade in rare plants, specifically cacti and succulents, involves an illegal market of wild-dug species that harms native populations in countries including Mexico and South Africa.

APA

WWF International (n.d.). Holiday shopping with wildlife in mind. https://www.worldwildlife.org/resources/tips/holiday-shopping-with-wildlife-in-mind/

Chicago

WWF International. Holiday shopping with wildlife in mind. n.d. https://www.worldwildlife.org/resources/tips/holiday-shopping-with-wildlife-in-mind/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=Holiday shopping with wildlife in mind |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/resources/tips/holiday-shopping-with-wildlife-in-mind/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternationalndholiday, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{Holiday shopping with wildlife in mind}}, institution = {WWF International}, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/resources/tips/holiday-shopping-with-wildlife-in-mind/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }