Pangolins have the dubious distinction of being the most trafficked mammals in the world. Yet as often as they wind up in wildlife seizures, authorities and conservationists have no universal way to track and identify individual pangolins. But researchers are working to change this. In a recently published study, they proposed what they call the […]
  • Pangolins, the world’s most trafficked mammals, frequently appear in wildlife seizures, yet there is no universal system for tracking or identifying individual animals.
  • Researchers proposed what they call the Pangolin Universal Notching System (PUNS), a standardized way to assign unique identification numbers to up to 15,554 individuals.
  • PUNS combines marking techniques used for turtles and hoofed mammals by gently drilling holes in selected scales along a pangolin’s back for permanent, minimally invasive identification.
  • Conservationists say the proposed system could improve pangolin traceability and disrupt trafficking networks but note some limitations and challenges in achieving global adoption.