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Seahorses could be extinct in 30 years: Trade in dried wildlife souvenirs could see the marine creatures wiped out

The Seahorse Trust campaigns to stop the sale of dried marine animals
It is illegal to sell dried seahorses in the UK and they are endangered
The majority of seahorses found for sale in the UK come from the Far East
Seahorse fisheries have reported a minimum decline of 50 per cent in the last five years

Published: 07:06 EST, 31 July 2015 | Updated: 18:47 EST, 31 July 2015

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A charity has said that seahorses (pictured) could be extinct within 30 years as a result of the trade

Seahorses will be wiped out within three decades by the illegal sale of dead wildlife as curiosities, according to a conservation charity.

The Seahorse Trust has launched a new campaign to target the sale of dried marine animals as holiday keepsakes.

As families flock to seaside resorts across Britain for the summer holidays, the trust is warning people not to buy the mementos and instead report shops that sell them to the charity.

Creatures such as seahorses, starfish, pipefish and corals are found in tourist shops in coastal towns across the UK.

Neil Garrick-Maidment, executive director of the Seahorse Trust, said while they might seem like innocent seaside souvenirs, they are illegal.

He said the curio trade is causing the death of millions of species and the breakdown of their habitats on a global scale.

The Devon-based charity hopes the new campaign will continue the work they started last year when they convinced eBay to ban the sale of seahorses through the site in Europe, America and Australia.

'Seahorses, sharks and crocodiles are protected species and they're being sold as distasteful seaside mementos in villages and towns across Britain,' said Mr Garrick-Maidment.

'There are hundreds, if not thousands, of these shops and most people seem to think if something is for sale in a shop then it must be legal.

'A lot of the packaging says it's from sustainable sources but there's nothing sustainable about it. It can't be just by the sheer quantities.'

Britain has two native species of seahorse - the spiny seahorse and the short snouted variety - both of which are heavily protected.

MALE SEAHORSES GET PREGNANT

The majority of seahorses found for sale in the UK come from the Far East and some are sold here for as little as a few pounds

There are between 30 and 40 species of seahorse and Mr Garrick-Maidment of The Seahorse Trust says they are all either endangered, rare or threatened.

Seahorses, whose Latin name is hippocampus, range is size from half an inch to 14 inches (13mm-36cm) and are the only animal where the male has a complete reversed pregnancy.

For most species the male releases on average between 100 and 1,000 young, known as fry, but less than one in a thousand survive to adulthood.

Britain has two native species of seahorse - the spiny seahorse and the short snouted variety - both of which are heavily protected.

Studland Bay in Dorset had been the only place where colonies of both species were found but Mr Garrick-Maidment said there have been no sightings in their study site for two years.

It is illegal to kill, take or disturb the creatures in British waters, so the curio trade in this country is imported from abroad.

The import and export of seahorses has been controlled under CITES, an international treaty that protects trading in wildlife, since 2004, but countries like Indonesia, Japan, Norway and South Korea chose to opt out of the trade rules set by CITES.

The majority of seahorses found for sale in the UK come from the Far East and some are sold here for as little as a few pounds.

Official figures show that 64 million seahorses are taken from the wild every year and used in traditional Chinese medicine and the curio trade.

But another charity, Save Our Seahorses (SOS), carried out undercover research that suggests this is grossly underestimated and in fact more than 150 million seahorses are killed annually.

Seahorse fisheries have reported a minimum decline of 50 per cent in the last five years and SOS says this means the creatures could become extinct within the next 30 years.

There are between 30 and 40 species of seahorse and Mr Garrick-Maidment says they are all either endangered, rare or threatened.

'Over the last year we managed to persuade eBay to ban the sale of seahorses, alive or dead, for these trades in Europe, America and Australia,' he said.

Seahorses (pictured), starfish, pipefish and corals are found in tourist shops in coastal towns across the UK. A spokesman for the Seahorse Trust said while they might seem like innocent souvenirs they are illegal

'That's saved about 100,000 seahorses, probably more, and now we want to target shops in the UK. We have volunteers across the country helping stop this despicable crime.'

Last year a tourist shop in Brixham, Devon, was reported by the trust for selling dead seahorses, as well as shark parts and a small Philippine crocodile.

The shop owner was cautioned and all his stock was confiscated.

'He had more than 10,000 dead seahorses. When you think a seahorse has a habitat of 20 to 50 square metres, that's a huge area of the environment where those seahorses have gone from,' Mr Garrick-Maidment said.

Seahorses, sharks and crocodiles (pictured above) are protected species and they're being sold as seaside mementoes in villages and towns across Britain according to a representative from the Seahorse Trust

'We've only just launched the campaign and we've already had several shops reported to us. We've got volunteers going in undercover to take pictures and we'll give all the evidence to wildlife crime units.'

The trust hopes to compile a database of who is selling what and in what quantities so they can lobby the Government to crack down on the practice.

In the future they also plan to target Chinatowns in large cities believed to be selling similar items.

Seahorses, whose Latin name is hippocampus, range is size from half an inch to 14 inches (13mm-36cm) and are the only animal where the male has a complete reversed pregnancy.

For most species the male releases on average between 100 and 1,000 young, known as fry, but less than one in a thousand survive to adulthood.

Anyone who finds a shop selling curios can report it to the trust through its confidential email address: illegaltrade@theseahorsetrust.org.