Seized trafficked wildlife: how Canada can better track what happens next

A seizure with unanswered questions

ECCC said the seizure involved 63 turtles and 58 eggs from a Calgary man importing them for online sale. The Calgary Zoo kept two turtles, the others went to an Ontario reptile sanctuary, and the eggs were euthanized; later outcomes for the animals have not been publicly reported.

What Canadian law covers

The law implements Canada’s obligations under CITES, an international agreement focused on legal, sustainable and traceable wildlife trade. WAPPRIITA was amended to strengthen penalties, sentencing and enforcement powers; those changes took effect in 2017.

Gaps in care and reporting

ECCC enforces the act under a policy that encourages specialized organizations to help with enforcement, including by holding live animals. In practice, zoos and sanctuaries care for confiscated or forfeited wildlife, and the policy says animals may be moved somewhere secure and well cared for.

But neither the act nor the policy sets care standards or accreditation requirements for those facilities. The law also does not require public reporting about placement decisions or what ultimately happens to the animals, while its language can describe them as property or specimens.

Calls for a broader review

The biologist argues that wildlife trafficking causes suffering and harms ecosystems, while Canada’s law focuses mainly on controlling trade and property rights. WAPPRIITA requires review every 10 years, but the reviews have been limited to fines and sentencing rather than animal welfare and transparency.

The biologist says the law should be updated to address the welfare of confiscated animals and set minimum accreditation requirements for facilities that receive them. The article also notes that the most recent federal wildlife forfeiture example the author could find with a publicly reported destination was the 2022 seizure.