Smugglers who allegedly stuffed 125 exotic birds into drain pipes have been arrested in Indonesia, officials said Thursday, as part of a bid to clamp down on a lucrative illegal trade in wildlife.Four men have been charged after 41 endangered white cockatoos and 84 eclectus parrots were discovered squashed into plastic piping that had been cut and sealed at each end by wire.Police said the men were arrested in four separate locations in eastern Indonesia, and are part of a suspected wildlife

The pangolin is a mammal not known to many, yet it is the most trafficked animal in the world. Its large Keratin scales – which are hard and sharp – cover its skin help protect it from carnivorous predators such as tigers, lions and leopards.

A new species of orangutan has been discovered in the remote jungles of Indonesia, immediately becoming the world's most endangered great ape, researchers said Thursday."It's the first declaration of a new great ape species in about 100 years," Ian Singleton, co-author of the study and director of the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme, told AFP.

Indonesian authorities have seized more than 100 pangolins, all of them alive, an official said Wednesday, a haul of the critically endangered species that conservationists estimate to be worth about 1.5 million dollars.Indonesian officials discovered the pangolins on Tuesday in a raid on a fishing boat off the east coast of Sumatra island, the navy said in a press statement.Authorities were tipped off by local residents who said men were attempting to smuggle the scaly mammals to Malaysia.Pa

Two Vietnamese fishermen were found dead and five others arrested after a sea chase ended in a collision in Philippine waters at the weekend, authorities said Monday.A Philippine patrol ship pursued six Vietnamese fishing boats 30 nautical miles off the northern coastal town of Bolinao, a regional military spokesman told AFP.Officials are investigating the cause of the pair's death, but their bodies were found after a Vietnamese boat slammed into the Philippine vessel, said Lieutenant Jo

Southeast Asia is labelled as a popular smuggling hub for illegal trading; whether it is human trafficking, drug abuse or illegal animal trade. These practices are driven by poor monitoring and law enforcements within the region. While money is the usual modus operandi for other criminal activities, illegal wildlife trade is often backed by customary beliefs and demands from TCM (traditional Chinese medicine).