Butterfly hunters and the global trade in endangered species | DW Documentary

Butterfly hunters and the global trade in endangered species | DW Documentary

Every year, more than 100,000 dead butterflies are shipped all across the globe. They are sold as collectibles. It is rumoured the highest price for a butterfly ever sold in Japan was around 22,000,000 yen ($140,000 US). While having a drink, I’ll look at the butterflies with a smile on my face. But there is a dark side to this hobby. Some fear it could drive several butterfly species to extinction. That’s the one. Indonesia is home to some of the most spectacular butterflies in the world. When you mentioned big orders, how big are we talking about? Thousands. Thousands? Our film team investigates how butterflies are hunted and illegally smuggled out of the country. Seeing how little control we have over this trade, surely these butterflies will disappear one day. We’re saving petrol, right? Don’t use the air conditioner yet. I’m afraid there won’t be enough petrol for us to get home. At the break of dawn, Djunijanti Peggie, the foremost butterfly expert in Indonesia, is out on a mission. She’s on the hunt for a particular species of butterfly she last saw on the island of Bacan four years ago. When I did the field survey, I found only a few Croesus butterflies in their natural habitat. I have also conducted surveys throughout the island of Ternate and could not find a trace of this species. Found only on a few islands in Indonesia, and nowhere else on Earth, the Ornithoptera croesus has always been elusive. But there is a growing concern that its population in the wild has decreased even more today. Butterflies, believe it or not, some of them are also targets of an underground smuggling network. Recently, Jinan Customs intercepted thousands of butterfly specimens. This is one of the mail packages we intercepted, it came from Indonesia. Over the years, news of rare and protected species of butterflies being smuggled across borders have been making headlines. In 2018, a story by the National Geographic estimated the global black market for butterflies in a range of hundreds of millions of dollars a year. And in several of the reported cases, butterflies from Indonesia were among those being peddled. There is a high diversity of endemic Indonesian butterflies. Many collectors want to get them. With more than 17,000 islands, Indonesia is gifted with one of earth’s most biodiverse habitats. More than 2,000 species of butterflies can be found in the country. Some of these, like the Ornithoptera croesus, are amongst the world’s largest butterflies. Look, it’s there. It’s the Croesus! Butterflies also function as pollinators, and if butterflies are gone, how can the cycle of life be sustained in this world that requires pollination? The Ornithoptera croesus can still be spotted in the wild, but the threat it faces is far from over. Tefuya is a pub operating in Tokyo for over 40 years. Other than booze and food, owner Kiyomi Kakizawa serves his patrons another speciality. Where did I put that… Is Ornithoptera croesus popular in Japan? Yes, it is popular. The back of these are beautiful because the males only have a few red spots a pair for 1,000 yen ($6,5 USD). ‎1,000 yen for me. Alright, ‎1,000 yen. 1,300 yen ($8,5 USD) Inside the pub are some 5,000 dead butterflies, all for sale. 2,500 yen ($16 USD) 2,600 yen ($17 USD) 2,600 yen ($17 USD), anyone? There you go. Over the years, the pub has become a gathering place for people from all walks of life, sharing one common obsession. It can be found in this forest. You will look up butterflies in the books and target some species, and when you catch the actual one in the forest, you get excited and cry out. The next one is nice, too. How much for a pair of Troides hypolitus? 2,000 yen ($13 USD). I get excited when I catch butterflies in my net. One day, when I was 45, there was a butterfly that passed right in front of me. I became obsessed with it. And I knew I would do this for the rest of my life. The hobby of collecting butterflies has spread across the world, and in Asia, none more so than in Japan. I believe that in Japan, there are about 10,000 butterfly enthusiasts. But I can’t be sure. This cabinet contains butterflies mostly from Europe. Over here, we have South America and Asia. In the house of every serious butterfly collector, is a cabinet dedicated to storing hundreds and thousands of butterfly specimens. Like many collectors in Japan, Jun Hase was first exposed to the hobby as a child. In the past, the homework for summer vacation was often insect collecting. We had to bring insects that we collected during the holidays to school and research them. As Jun-san frequently travels, he’s had multiple opportunities to hunt for butterflies. For many other collectors though, there’s an easier way to get their hands on the exclusive butterflies found overseas. There are a lot of people just buying. It is not easy going abroad to hunt. According to wildlife trade regulation records, more than a hundred thousand butterflies are traded across the globe every year. This is for 2,000 yen (US$13). 2,000 yen 3,500 yen ($23 USD). Everyone wants to be number one. They all show off how many butterflies they caught or how many boxes they bought. But not all butterflies can be traded freely. More than 40 of the rarest and most popular species of butterflies have been classified as protected, by an international treaty known as CITES. CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. It is the foremost framework regulating international wildlife trade. To trade these protected species of butterflies out of their home country, sellers must obtain a CITES export permit. Without these permits, a country will find it very very difficult to assess whether a species is in danger from trade or not. What the system allows you to do, is to get an idea of how much is being traded, where are these animals and plants being sourced from. Of the protected butterfly species, more than half can be found in Indonesia: they belong to the genera Troides, Trogonoptera and Ornithoptera. In Indonesia, the permit is only issued to breeders who have a licence for captive breeding. The butterflies can still be traded as long as they come from ranching or captive breeding practices. Despite the regulations, more than 1,500 of these protected butterflies have been trafficked out of Indonesia in the past decade. And experts believe there could be more. Seizures of illegal wildlife shipments, it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Because trade can be illegal, it is impossible, almost, to quantify how much we have missed. This area seems very old. Since I was small, it has been like this. Arfan Sabran is a documentary filmmaker who has investigated a number of environmental issues in Indonesia. The butterfly trade caught his attention ever since he visited the Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park some years back. Maybe because the first time I went there, I was still a child, so my first reaction was definitely like all the other children, “Wow, it’s so beautiful!” Located on the island of Sulawesi, the Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park is known as a commercial centre for butterflies. Countless butterflies are hunted, turned into souvenirs and also sold overseas to collectors. This one is 75,000 rupiah ($5 USD). But when I grew up and saw how many butterflies were being traded, I started to wonder, how many butterflies have died for us, for our hobbies, for collecting? In March 2023, Arfan started an investigation in the area. He was determined to find out how hunters and traders have bypassed the law to smuggle out hordes of butterflies for such a long time. Drive ahead a little more. Yes, slowly now. The production team arrives at a village near the Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park. Two villagers are seen hunting butterflies. He is currently hunting. I can go there to ask some questions. After some negotiation, the hunters allow Arfan and the production crew to follow them. That’s the one. 33 year old ‘Joyo’ has been hunting butterflies since he was 10. This was just caught? I can see that it is still alive. First, we push its belly. Push its belly? Then we store it. If we do not push its belly, it will keep moving. For this one, this small one is 1,000 rupiah per butterfly. This one is 2,000 rupiah, this one is 5,000 rupiah. It turns out ‘Joyo’ manages a group of hunters, most of whom are still at schooling age. Butterflies always sell here. The kids here catch butterflies, because they want to get an allowance. They feel happy when every day, they can get around 10,000 rupiah or 20,000 rupiah. 15-year-old ‘Opik’ had dropped out of school three years ago because of financial troubles at home. Why did you end up becoming a butterfly hunter? So I can earn money for my daily needs, so I no longer have to burden my parents. Is there any plan to return to school? I don’t think so. I am too far behind. Even if we don’t catch the butterflies, they will still die. It only lives for around one month anyway. In Indonesia, it is illegal to catch butterflies that are considered protected species. It is also illegal to catch any type of butterfly inside conservation areas, like the national park. ‘Joyo’ and ‘Opik’ keep their hunting to the village grounds, but that has not always been the case. When we hunt, it is usually behind the mountain. Going past the mountain? Isn’t that the conservation area? Yes, sir. Have you ever been arrested? Far too often. By people from the Forestry department. Until my nets were confiscated. Despite the run-ins with the authorities, Joyo continues to venture into the national park… We caught these ones ourselves. …where protected butterflies can be found, because pricing in the butterfly market is dictated by one important rule. It is not about the size or type. As long as the butterfly is rare, it will be very expensive. When I caught a rare one, its price was 1,000,000 rupiah ($62 USD) per butterfly. If it’s resold, the price would be even higher. Where do they sell them again? They ship them overseas, like Japan. There are many collectors from overseas who come here, trying to find rare ones. This is an Asebi tree, it is a food plant for Callophrys ferrea butterflies. The caterpillars are usually at the tip of the branches. 80-year-old ‘Haruki’ is a doctor. In his spare time, he is devoted to butterflies. Like many butterfly collectors in Japan, ‘Haruki’ caught his first butterfly when he was a child. It was in Kagawa prefecture, my hometown. That’s when I caught the butterfly and showed it to my teacher. But the first one that gave me a good impression was the one that I caught in Southeast Asia. My teacher told me it was a very impressive butterfly. Today, ‘Haruki’ has amassed a collection of some 10,000 butterflies from around the world, admired by many other collectors. 80% of the butterflies in Haruki’s collection were purchased. He shares that some of the butterflies cost more than $1,000 USD each. But these are not his most valuable. These butterflies from Africa come with a price tag of $7,500 USD and up. And he hopes to expand his collection. I would like to get my hands on the female butterfly of this species, but I haven’t been able to find any so far. When you look at these butterflies, what about them is beautiful to you? It’s not so much that they’re beautiful. It’s more that the females are so rare and difficult to find. But what ‘Haruki’ chases after are not just the rarest butterflies. He’s compelled to make each collection as complete as possible. Altogether, ‘Haruki’ easily owns more than 100 butterflies that belong to the species protected by the international treaty CITES. I write to dealers in Japan who will make the arrangements to deliver the specimens to me. I cannot buy them directly. In Japan, there is only one legal requirement to bring in these butterflies: an export permit issued by the exporting country. You can buy it. Once it has been imported to Japan, it’s not a crime. According to records from Japan Customs, only four shipments of these protected butterflies have been caught without permits at the country’s borders, between 2017 and 2021. But some attribute the low figures to the challenges of enforcing custom control. You see, there are so many planes arriving, no one checks everything. And even if they do find something, I don’t think they know the difference. If it’s like this, you might notice, but if it is wrapped in paper you wouldn’t know which butterfly it is. Butterfly specimens are often shipped inside triangular papers with their wings folded. This makes it easy for them to slip past customs, unidentified. Generally, there are dealers who follow the book. There are also dealers who just catch the butterflies with no regard for the rules. ‘Haruki’ clearly knows of dealers who break the rules, but remains unperturbed. The problem is with what some organisations are saying. “Because of this hobby, the population of the butterfly is slowly decreasing”. It’s not really true. Birds consume a lot of butterflies for food. Compared to this, catching the butterflies does not really change the order of nature. “Haruki” does not believe that hunting butterflies will endanger the population. And this disbelief is compounded by one other problem. There is often insufficient information with how these butterflies are really doing in the wild. Indeed, there are still very few butterfly researchers in Indonesia because the job is considered unnecessary. Yeah that’s the male of Croesus. But even if we debate on it, it’s not only the butterflies that are important. Many other animals are essential, so we need to have a balance. In Indonesia, there is only a handful of butterfly researchers monitoring more than 2,000 species of butterflies in the country. But while there is a lack of statistics proving the threat posed by commercial trade, experts like Djunijanti Peggie would rather err on the side of caution. We need to remember if hunting is done on a limited population and if it is done on a large scale, then that could result in the extinction of this species. The widespread plundering of butterflies can wipe out rare species, and even tip the fragile balance of ecosystems. Right now, we are on our way to the middleman in Bantimurung, he buys a lot of butterflies from the hunters. Documentary filmmaker, Arfan Sabran, who’s assisting with the investigation, is meeting a middleman who’s believed to be linked to the butterfly dealers. Hello. ‘Abdul’ has been in the butterfly trade for over 30 years. He started hunting as a child, and is now an expert in making souvenir products, targeted at both local and foreign tourists. So, we dispose of the feet, we do not need it when it’s mounted in the frame. Just like this. Slowly. Add a little glue. When we put the butterflies in the frames, there should be many different colours. The butterflies are not only from Bantimurung. The ones from the outside, we trade them. Let’s say, we need 500 butterflies, we’ll ask the person, trade or cash? I used to have a stock of 250,000 butterflies. 250,000 butterflies? Yes, in the 1990s. Now, it is no longer possible. You need a permit to hunt in the National Park. But ‘Abdul’ has also found another surprising source for butterflies, one that does not need to rely on other middlemen or hunters. ‘Abdul’ has built a special enclosure, right at the back of his house. This one. This one. This has hatched. This is Troides helena. In the enclosure are numerous pupa, from which butterflies will soon emerge. And once they do so, they will be killed almost immediately. This was hatched in the enclosure. This practice of breeding butterflies for sale is encouraged by the Indonesian government, although there are challenges. There’s a male and female mating. Wow. Very nice. Over at Bacan in North Maluku, researcher Djunijanti Peggie has come to assess a breeding site, owned by a local. Lined with rows of the specific plants the endemic Ornithoptera croesus feeds on, the site is flourishing. In my opinion, it is very good to develop breeding practices like this. Without breeding, the butterflies will be caught directly from the wild, and it will be even more dangerous for the populations in the wild. In Indonesia, protected butterfly species can be exported out of the country, with proof that they are a product of such breeding practices and not hunted from the wild. To operate legally, breeders must apply for a breeding permit. Actually people can breed Croesus since it’s not hard, right? Right. But why do we sell them illegally? Isn’t there any permit? It’s quite hard to get the permit. And as for the locals, there is not enough money to apply for the permit. It’s a financial issue. To successfully apply for a permit, strict criteria must be met, including a minimum land area for the breeding site, which small scale breeders like Alisi, find difficult to meet. But this is not the only problem plaguing the system. That’s the pupa. Over the years, the European Union, one of the biggest importers of the Ornithoptera croesus, has been questioning if the butterflies which were granted export permits truly originate from such breeding practices. Some breeders only focus on breeding the butterflies but they don’t record accordingly. It is not done properly, so CITES and the European Union have repeatedly questioned the records many times. To reassess the system, Indonesian authorities suspended all trade of the Ornithoptera croesus in 2017. The trade suspension remains today. But there is evidence the Ornithoptera croesus continues to make their way out of Indonesia. Hmm, this is Croesus. Oh this is Croesus too. For me, I only go through a friend as an intermediary. Small businesses like ours lack the capital to get the CITES permit. ‘Abdul’ declines to reveal the identity of the dealer who ships his butterflies overseas, but it is not difficult to seek them out. Hmm, this is Croesus. Oh this is Croesus too. January 2022. Wildlife dealers and traders across the globe have taken to various social media platforms to connect to their buyers. In many countries, online, the internet are the new marketplace for wildlife. And it has a huge impact on species, all the consumers see is a picture which then translates into either a live animal or a product that ends up at their doorstep. That really really changes the way you view biodiversity, and there’s probably very little understanding of how your click of a button has impacted the environment far far away from you. Many are from Belgium, from France, from Costa Rica. Seoul, Korea. On this particular Facebook site, a variety of butterfly species protected by CITES are listed. And these, include the Ornithoptera croesus, although authorities have suspended its trade. Arfan manages to get in touch with the dealer and expresses interest in his stock. The response comes a day later. The dealer agrees to meet. In Japan, where thousands of butterflyes are imported every year, collectors argue that their knowledge and efforts are indispensable. May I show you examples? When I was in Cameron Highlands, this butterfly and this butterfly were flying together, entirely together. But, when they are flying, it is hard to identify. For example, this has six legs. But this one, because this is a Daniadae, it only has four legs. Akio is the president of a manufacturing corporation, but he spends his free time studying butterfly specimens. By doing so, he has made a number of discoveries and published his findings. In Japan, there are a lot of picture books, but they were mostly written by amateurs, not researchers. A lot of passion and time were needed to write these books. Many unknown butterflies have been discovered. There is no distinction between amateurs and professionals. At the university, there is only one team of researchers, but for the amateurs, they are all over the world, not only in Japan. At the Research Institute of Evolutionary Biology in Tokyo, research fellow Shuhei Yamaguchi has been receiving countless boxes of butterflies, donated by collectors in Japan who have passed away. This specimen box has been left behind by Mr Nakamura, for us to look after. This box is our institute’s original box, it’s the general collection. I put them in the Philippines’ section. By doing this, you can see the same species exists from India and Indonesia, but the appearance is a little different. With these contributions, the research institute has built up one of the largest collections of Southeast Asian butterflies in the world. Studying which areas they exist in, you realise that one single species of butterfly contains many possibilities. They are specimens but they are still real. They are proof that the butterflies exist in that certain area. Shuhei says such specimens are vital as one day, they may be the only record that is left of some of these butterflies. Globally, many butterfly populations are on the decline, impacted by habitat loss and climate change. Many butterfly species feed on specific types of plants, so the disappearances of those plants will spell almost certain demise for them. We no longer see them here, but at that time, there were all kinds of butterflies, such as Camellia butterflies, that flew around here. It’s gotten really lonely. In Singapore’s case, I’ve heard millions of food plants for butterflies have disappeared already, so they’ll die because of that, right? But the people who are behind these things don’t think they’re killing butterflies, right? As a result, they end up killing a huge number of butterflies. way more than those killed by nets. After all, the ones who really know the value of butterflies are the collectors. Indonesian documentary filmmaker Arfan Sabran is on his way to the port city of Ambon to meet a dealer who sells butterflies to overseas buyers. Greetings. At the hall gate? Oh, in front of it? Yes. Okay. The address provided by the dealer leads to a quiet residential area. Good morning. Hello. The dealer however is not present. He has left his staff to show the team his stock. Is this everything? Oh, there is more at the back. According to the staff, the butterflies here are all sold overseas. When you mentioned big orders, how big are we talking about? Thousands. Thousands? You have received up to thousands? We have. I have processed orders for Blumeis, Androcles and there were around 4,000. Previously, I never imagined that the butterfly business would be so extensive until I met a seller who has an international network. And the collection is plentiful. The collection is diverse and many protected species that are very rare are being traded overseas. Prized amongst the stock, are a few specimens with unique colorations and features, likely due to genetic mutation. These are the rarest of the rare, and highly sought after by collectors. This one is 750 US dollars. For these two, it’s 1,500. But how does the dealer take protected species like the Ornithoptera croesus out of the country when authorities have suspended its trade? Greetings. Sir, these are the people who want to talk to you. I am in your warehouse now. Looking at the Croesus already. Could you ship the Croesus to Kuala Lumpur next week? Is it possible? It’s possible but how many can we send? They cannot be shipped just like that. Right now, shipments with Ornithoptera must have a CITES permit. Clearly, the dealer is aware of the regulations. How much does it cost to get the CITES permit and how long will it take? I am in Jakarta now, making the CITES permit. Please check how many you need, I can make new CITES permits. The dealer’s answer confirms Arfan’s suspicions. For trading of Croesus butterflies, as far as I know the government will not issue a CITES permit, and I am sure that even if it is successfully traded out of the country, it will be with a fake permit. Fake or falsified documents are common in wildlife trade regulation. Sometimes it is as simple as changing a date, changing a logo, falsifying a signature on a document. These are the challenges, especially when the system is very very dependent on documents like permits. And it will depend on the diligence of the enforcement officer who is going through hundreds of parcels, to find a document that may have been falsified. Seeing the number of butterflies being caught every day by hunters, seeing how these butterflies are traded overseas illegally, and seeing how little control we have over this trade, surely these butterflies will disappear one day. But this is also related to many families, many people who rely on this business. Maybe we need to think about how to slowly reduce the impact of this business. In the last decade, close to 300,000 protected butterflies have been exported out of Indonesia. But this only represents the amount under the legal radar. How would you feel if one day the Croesus becomes extinct from the world? This is a melancholic question. It’s really sad, despite our many efforts for Croesus, it may not be enough. Why would you feel sad? There are still so many other butterflies. It’s like if you have a child you know, even though you have five or you have only two, but of course you will love them equally. You always bring your camera with you right? Don’t just take selfies, take some butterfly photos around you. You can upload them to Kupunesia. Peggie has personally funded the creation of an app to encourage citizens to participate in butterfly conservation by contributing to the data collection of butterflies. This is Appias zarinda, it usually gathers around the sands over there. This is Graphium eurypylus… Globally, there are more than 17,000 butterfly species. This makes them one of the most diverse and fascinating groups of animals. But perhaps, also one of the hardest to study and protect. I like butterflies because they are a source of inspiration for me and for my life. We as humans have to feel that we are a part of nature, and we share the world with nature. Long live the butterflies of Indonesia!

Exotic butterflies are a coveted commodity. Every year, more than 100,000 butterflies are shipped all over the world and sold as collector’s items. As a result, some species are almost extinct.

This film is a piece of investigative journalism that shows how the trade in exotic butterflies works worldwide. It is set in Indonesia, home to more than 2,000 butterfly species. Here, hunters mainly catch rare specimens to sell. Buyers in Japan, for example, pay thousands of dollars for them. Conservationists in Indonesia are trying to combat this practice to preserve biodiversity.

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