The Egyptian Ministry of Local Development and Environment foiled an attempt to smuggle 30 small crocodiles on a train coming from Aswan and heading to Alexandria. The lengths of the seized crocodiles ranged between 20 and 25 centimeters, according to the Egyptian newspaper “Youm7”.
According to the CEO of the Environmental Affairs Agency, Engineer Sherif Abdel Rahim, the Assiut Wadi Reserve Administration received a telephone notification regarding the seizure of crocodiles inside a large blue container placed inside a briefcase, at the Assiut railway station in the possession of an air conditioning technician on board a train heading to Alexandria.
A specialized committee was formed from the nature reserves sector to follow up on the incident and coordinate with the concerned authorities to receive the seized crocodiles and transfer them to the Assiut Valley Reserve in preparation for transferring them to their natural habitat in Lake Nasser to continue their lives there.
The crocodile trade is active again
The recent crocodile smuggling incident is not the first of its kind, as the crocodile trade and attempts to smuggle and export them abroad are active in several regions in Egypt, despite the Egyptian authorities’ decision to ban these practices.
Based on the 2009 Environmental Law, which prohibits the hunting, killing, export, import, or trade of fish, birds, and wild animals, violators are subject to a penalty and a fine of not less than 5,000 pounds and not more than 50,000 pounds, according to the “Egypt in Youm” news website.
However, the Ministry of Agriculture allows citizens to establish farms to raise crocodiles under certain conditions and after obtaining licenses, through the Treaty on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which is the body that monitors the global trade in wild animals, which allowed the return of the crocodile trade in Egypt at specific rates.
The crocodile trade brings huge wealth
Crocodile skins are considered one of the most valuable skins, and are used in the manufacture of clothes and bags, which makes crocodiles a real wealth for their traffickers, especially with the scarcity of fish in Lake Nasser and the decline in tourism coming to Aswan in recent years, all of which are factors that have contributed to the prosperity of crocodile trade and breeding in Egypt, according to the “Egypt in Youm” news website.
Small crocodiles that do not exceed 25 centimeters in length are also sold to the people of Aswan Governorate as a way to attract tourists. Some merchants even sell crocodile teeth to make necklaces from them, and sell their young as ornamental fish or pets through markets or social networking sites.
The average value of one crocodile reaches 10 thousand pounds, depending on its type and size, and according to estimates, between 30 and 40 thousand people depend on this field as a basic source of livelihood.
This prompted the Egyptian government to enter this field, and in 2016, the Ministry of Environment, in cooperation with the Armed Forces, announced the establishment of the first crocodile breeding farm in Egypt in Aswan, according to the “Egypt in Youm” news website.
Environmental risks resulting from poaching crocodiles
The crocodile trade and poaching led to a decline in their numbers in Lake Nasser, which is the natural habitat for crocodiles in Egypt, as they reached only 32 thousand crocodiles.
The decline in the number of crocodiles in their natural habitat affects the ecosystem in the surrounding area. Because crocodiles play an essential role in getting rid of dead fish, insects, rodents, and marine creatures migrating to the lake.
Throwing small crocodiles that were acquired as ornamental fish or pets into waterways in residential areas after they are large and difficult to control affects the safety of the residents in those areas, according to the Egyptian newspaper “Youm 7”.
