Genomic analyses reveal poaching hotspots and illegal trade in pangolins from Africa to Asia

Reducing the illegal wildlife trade requires an understanding of its origins. Here we present a genomic approach for tracing confiscated scales from the world’s most trafficked mammal, the white-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis), to their geographic origins. Analyzing scales seized in Hong Kong SAR, China from 2012–2018 revealed intense poaching along Cameroon’s southern border. Poaching pressures shifted over time from West to Central Africa. Using data from seizures representing nearly one million African pangolins, we identified Nigeria as a significant hub for trafficking, where scales are amassed and shipped to Vietnam and Hong Kong SAR, China, with final transit to markets in Guangdong and Guangxi, China. This origin-to-destination approach offers new opportunities to disrupt the illegal wildlife trade and to guide anti-trafficking measures.