California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Wildlife officials in California say they disrupted significant trafficking operations this month, seizing “hundreds” of illegal items made from elephant ivory, rhino horns, walrus tusks, and other poached animals.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) said it launched an investigation after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service intercepted a “falsely labeled” shipment from Thailand to Fresno containing four elephant trunks. The trunks were confirmed to belong to Asian elephants, which are protected under the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES).
“This month in Fresno, CDFW law enforcement officers seized hundreds of illegal products made from ivory and elephant, and a number of other products from poached animals, including rhino horns, walrus tusks, suspected bear gall bladders, saiga antelope, and turtle shells,” the agency said…