New campaign targets wildlife crime in SA

The State Government and Crime Stoppers SA have launched the Call It Out campaign, exposing the cruel practices of traffickers – and showing how the community can help by speaking up.
 
Wildlife trafficking involves the capture, transport and sale of native species, including birds, lizards, snakes, frogs, small marsupials, ants and invertebrates.
 
The Call It Out campaign highlights warning signs that the public can identify to help stop wildlife crime and exploitation, including:

• People digging, trapping or collecting wildlife in bushland or reserves.
• Vehicles parked off-track or hidden, especially with ladders or equipment near trees or hollows.
• Online listings for native animals without a South Australian permit number (for non-exempt species).
• Large numbers of native animals kept in poor conditions.

Illegal wildlife ownership and trade poses a significant threat to these animals – which are smuggled in cramped, inhumane conditions that many never survive.
 
Criminals also put local ecosystems and biodiversity at risk, fuelled by global black market demand for exotic pets and breeding stock worth thousands of dollars.
 
There will be tougher penalties for people that harm or traffic native animals, including a maximum $500,000 fine or 10 years jail for individuals under the state’s first Biodiversity Act. Current fines are up to $100,000.  
 
The campaign builds on the partnership between Crime Stoppers and the Department for Environment and Water, with more than 150 reports on suspected wildlife crime made since the portal’s launch in June 2023.

To anonymously share information, visit dew.crimestopperssa.com.au.

The initiative is supported by the University of Adelaide’s Wildlife Crime Research Hub, which is running a showcase public event.