Hong Kong is a global hub for illegal wildlife trade with more than 15,000 tonnes of plant and animal products smuggled through the city in the past five years, according to a report by the ADM Capital Foundation.

However, scientists at The University of Hong Kong (“HKU”) Conservation Forensics Laboratory have combined their knowledge and expertise to develop methods and tools that will hopefully be employed in stopping illegal wildlife crime in Hong Kong.

Stable Isotope Analysis

One of the featured methods developed is a technique known as “stable isotope analysis”, which can help scientists prove a bird’s provenance through the molecular fingerprint left by its diet on its flesh and feathers, in hopes to stop illegal wildlife crime in Hong Kong

Isotopes are different varieties of the same certain chemicals. Modern techniques are able to measure the isotope signatures to determine an animal’s dietary history. Two individuals of the same species - one living in the wild, one raised in captivity - will have a very different isotope signature. Scientists are now trying to build a catalogue of isotope signatures for commonly traded bird species, with hope that the testing will be robust enough so that authorities can test a feather from a confiscated bird to prove its origin.

Dr Caroline Dingle, evolutionary ecologist and head of the Conservation Forensics Laboratory at HKU has commented that “in the wild, parrots mostly eat fruit and their isotope signature reflects that, but in captivity, they are fed pellets that have wheat and corn that give a very different signature. She further commented that “on any given day there are about 1,000 exotic birds for sale as pets [in the city]”, and the trade is “quickly emptying the forests of Southeast Asia of songbirds”.

The Stable Isotope Analysis is one of many projects currently being researched and implemented by the team at HKU. Others include the molecular tagging of endangered tress in Hong Kong to prevent them from being harvested and smuggled out; and using network analysis to map global pangolin trading routes in order for the proper authorities to disrupt the trade.

David Barker, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the lab considers their role as “identifying the emerging issues" and to bring change in issues such as mislabelling, especially in processed foods, including species of the European eel (or glass eel) being sold in supermarkets in Hong Kong despite being listed as critically endangered by IUCN and listed by CITES.

Seafood in Hong Kong

Professor Yvonne Sadovy, another member of the Conservation Forensics Laboratory and an expert on reef fish and fisheries, has been focusing on the plight of the Napoleon wrasse. In Hong Kong, a permit is required for each legally imported Napoleon wrasse, which can fetch up to HK$6,000 per serving. Professor Sadovy’s team managed to count about 1,000 Napoleon wrasse in local restaurants, even though not a single fish had been legally imported that year via permit.

The Napoleon wrasse have intricate patters on their faces, very much like individual fingerprints, and facial recognition technology and machine learning has been adopted to prevent the use of a single permit for different fish. An app is currently being developed so that anyone who sees a wrasse in a restaurant, can take a picture and upload it to a website to see whether the fish in the restaurant has been legally imported.

Johnny Richards, a molecular biologist with the Conservation Forensics Laboratory has been developing a toolkit that will allow authorities to monitor wet markets for the presence of endangered species. Richards has developed a process whereby he is able to extract environmental DNA (eDNA) of various species from drain water. Investigators are able to scoop up 50ml of water from a drain flowing out of a wet market, which can then be sent to the laboratory for further analysis.

In a pilot study last year, drain water from three Hong Kong wet markets was found to include the DNA of two species of thresher sharks and a black-chinned guitarfish - likely to be victims of the shark-fin trade that is still prevalent in and around Hong Kong.

The Conservation Forensics Laboratory has no plans to commercialise the tool kits and expertise but rather intends to provide the services to society for free, both locally and internationally. They hope that with stronger forensic capabilities, it will become a deterrent for smugglers and traders dealing in illegal wildlife. Their work is invaluable and we are thankful to have some of the world’s greatest minds working here in Hong Kong for the sake of wildlife.