Report casts Japan as major importer of rare plants and animals

TOKYO: Japan is a major importer of rare plants and animals whose international trade is restricted under a convention on endangered species, according to a report released last week in conjunction with an international conference on biological diversity being held in Nagoya.

The report, titled the "State of Wildlife Trade in Japan" and prepared by Traffic East Asia-Japan, a group that monitors wildlife trade, says Japan was the world's No. 2 importer of living tortoises and birds and the No. 3 in orchid imports in 2007.

Noting that Japan is currently hosting the international talks, the report says it aims to foster greater understanding of the country's trade patterns so that its wildlife trade economy can be guided toward ''one of responsible consumption.''

Japan imports more than roughly 1,600 species out of the roughly 5,000 animal species and the roughly 28,000 plant species designated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, according to the report. Import cases are on the rise, numbering about 50,000 in 2007, about five times more than two decades ago, the report says.

The report notes that it has found endangered species imported from Southeast Asia and Ryukyu black-breasted leaf turtle on sale at stores in the Kanto and Chubu regions in Japan. The indigenous turtle's sale is banned in the country because it is designated as a protected species.

The monitoring group is calling for legislation to toughen rules and penalties on the trade in these animals.

The report has also found that Japan was the top importer of Indian star tortoises and Greek spur-thigh tortoises, while it accounted for 12 per cent of orchid imports in the world.