"Every species is a masterpiece, created by the utmost care and genius; reverence for nature, reverence for life."
At this time, the global new crown virus has been raging madly for more than a year
Think back to the outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020
All eyes turned to the issue of wildlife consumption
Bats and pangolins have been suspected
The spread of the new crown virus "real killer"
Behind the brutal epidemic
Undoubtedly a song of wild animals!
June 5 last year
Pangolins are protected animals from the national level II
Upgraded to a national level protected animal
#药典除名穿山甲 #
Landing on the hot search triggered discussion among netizens
However, how many wild animals are there
Living in the heat of the water?
Hongmao medicinal liquor, antelope horn granules
Raw milk spirit, pharyngeal tablets...
Does the above drug name sound particularly familiar?
Today we will talk about it
Some questions about the medicinal use of wild animals
01
| The ban on the consumption of wild animals decided to legislate |
In order to ensure public health security and reduce the risk of epidemic diseases, China has adopted the strictest control of illegal wildlife trade in history. With the revision of the Wildlife Protection Law and the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on Completely Banning Illegal Wildlife Trade, Eliminating the Bad Habit of Indiscriminately Eating Wild Animals, and Effectively Protecting the People's Life, Health and Safety, it marks that China has fully entered the era of "fasting" for wild animals.
Source/Tibet SATELLITE TV+
However, it is worth noting that Article 4 of the Decision still defines other uses of wild animals such as medicinal uses as non-edible uses, and separately stipulates: "Where it is necessary to carry out non-edible use of wild animals due to special circumstances such as scientific research, medicinal use, and display, strict examination and approval and quarantine inspection shall be carried out in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State..."
02
| What is the difference between medicinal and edible? |
The Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China and drug standards are national drug standards promulgated by the drug supervision and administration department under the State Council, and are the statutory basis for the production, operation, use and supervision and management of drugs in China.
In addition, there are also the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government's own standards for Chinese herbal medicines and the specifications for the preparation of Chinese medicine tablets. That is to say, if wild animals are included in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia and local drug standards, they can be used for medicinal purposes.
After combing through the medicinal use of wild animals, we found that 34 species were included in the List of Wild Animals under National Key Protection (including 14 species of first-level protected animals and 20 species of second-level protected animals), and 32 species of wild animals listed in the appendix of the CITES Convention were included in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia or local drug standards.
Some wild animals that have been delisted from the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, such as pangolins, bear bile, leopard bones, hawksbill turtles, etc., still appear in local drug labels.
03
| What rare wild animals are being used in medicine? |
Graph source network
The pangolin that can punch holes, the scales are said to be through the muscles to activate the blood, through the milk to adjust the menstruation, reduce swelling and ulceration; the strong bear that is not afraid of the cold, has to eat the bear paw that can dispel the wind and cold, and the bones and bones; the Saiga antelope, known as the spirit of the plateau, the horn has the effect of dispersing blood and detoxification... Many of these amazing medicinal animals are derived from endangered species of flora and fauna.
At present, pangolins, musk, tigers, leopards, saiga antelopes, etc. are listed as first-class protected animals, nominally protected, but the existing number is still small and pitiful; although brown bears and black bears are listed as second-level protected animals, bear bile is a kind of important medicinal value. Bear bile medicines on the market are mainly obtained through cruel methods such as "live bear bile extraction".
A few years ago, the tragic situation of live bears being sucked out of bile was exposed by the media, setting off a wave of public opinion to ban the live bear bile industry, and to this day animal protection organizations are still fighting against the behavior of "live bear bile".
Some of the common medicines in life actually have wildlife ingredients:
| Musk |
Related drugs: Ma Yinglong musk hemorrhoid cream, musk shu huoling, musk heart and brain pain capsules
Musk is forest musk, horse musk and original musk
Dry secretions in sachets of mature males
The forest musk, horse musk and proto-musk are all national first-class protected animals
Because of the use of musk
Wild populations are critically endangered
At present, all three species of musk are farmed in various places
The key technology of artificial breeding has not yet been broken
Both the musk and the original musk currently have large captive populations
Raw materials for the production of musk
Production area:
1. Forest musk: distributed in Xinjiang, Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou and other places.
2. Horse musk: distributed in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Gansu, Yunnan, Sichuan and other places.
3, the original musk: mainly distributed in Heilongjiang, Jilin, Hebei and other places.
| Leopard bone |
Medicines: waist and leg pain pills, Tongren Dahuo Luo pills, tiger bone papaya wine, Hongmao medicinal wine
According to the Chinese Pharmacopoeia
Leopard bones are the bones of the feline leopard
Leopards include Indian leopards, leopard tigers, golden leopards, and wen leopards
Leopards are endangered and protected at the national level in large numbers
The use of leopard bones has been subject to very strict regulation
All leopards are internationally protected animals in China
Also a species in the CITES Appendix
Due to deforestation
Habitat loss and use in the production of traditional Chinese medicine
Leopard populations are decreasing
Leopards, clouded leopards, and snow leopards are not much more numerous than giant pandas
| Pangolin tablets |
Related drugs: raw milk spirit, turtle age set, pharyngeal tablets, golden nail row stone capsules
Pangolin tablets are taken from pangolin scales
Pangolins are national grade II protected animals
In recent years, due to over-hunting and habitat destruction
This has led to a sharp decline in pangolin populations
In 2008, it was difficult to see pangolin entities in the wild in China
Source/Shenzhen Customs
Pangolins inhabit moist woods in the hills, foothills and plains
It is found in Bhutan, China, India and Laos
Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam
June 5, 2020
To further increase the protection of pangolins
China will be all species of pangolins
Upgraded from national level II protected wild animals to level 1
In the 2020 edition of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia (Part I).
Pangolins were not further loaded
Pangolins will no longer be used as medicinal herbs
| Clams |
Related drugs: clam supplement capsules, clams and asthma pills
Clam dried bodies are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine products
The clam, commonly known as the great gecko, is a national second-class protected animal
Guangxi is the province with the largest number of clams
Due to years of overfishing and destruction of the natural environment
Wild clam resources are decreasing year by year, and the annual purchase volume is gradually decreasing
At present, artificial breeding of clams has been carried out in China, but it has not been successful
| Antelope Horn |
Related drugs: antelope horn granules, antelope reef drop pills
Antelope horn is taken from the horn of the Saiga antelope
Saiga antelope bulges because of its bulging nose
Also known as the "high-nosed antelope"
Our country is one of the countries of origin of the Saiga antelope
It is found in the border areas of northwestern Xinjiang
Because antelope horn is a valuable medicinal herb
After a long period of mass hunting, China's wild population has become extinct
It is found in southern Russia, Mongolia and Northern Ireland
Northern Xinjiang, China, is now found only in Russia
Saiga antelope is currently a CITES Appendix I species
It is also a national level protected animal
| Bear bile |
Medicines: Bear bile shu liver choleretic capsules, bear bile skullcap eye drops, compound bear bile clear liver granules, bear bile hemorrhoids cream
Bear bile is taken as a medicinal herb from the dried bile of black and brown bears
The Asian black bear living in China is divided into five subspecies
It has the largest population, about 28,000 head
Brown bears, on the other hand, have four geographic subspecies
The population in China is about 7,000 head
Tibetan Brown Bear/Ali Tour
Black bears and brown bears are currently both national second-level key protected animals in China
Black bear and brown bear populations have declined dramatically
The main reason is the demand for human bear products
According to the survey, China produces 12,590 kilograms of bear bile powder every year
The average yield of each gall bear is 2.6 kg of powder
With the development of modern medicine
The medicinal value of bear bile has gradually proved to be irreplaceable
At the same time due to the awakening of animal protection awareness
Bear hunting for bile has only gradually decreased in the past 20 years
| Tortoiseshell |
Drugs: Ginseng Zhibao Pills, Bovine Yolk Heat Dissipation, Hypertension Pills
Due to the overexploration of the beach where tortoiseshells lay their eggs and nest
and degradation of nest habitats
Survival rates in both juveniles and adults are significantly reduced
Hawksbill turtle populations have declined by more than 80 percent.
Classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List
It is also a CITES Appendix I protected animals
China's national first-class protected animals
In fact, according to the results of the special law enforcement action to crack down on illegal trade in wild animals jointly carried out by various departments, the endangered wildlife products seized by law enforcement agencies include clams, pangolin scales, dried seahorses, etc., which are actually products for medicinal purposes.
And these wildlife products account for an important proportion of the illegal wildlife trade, which should be a prominent problem in the fight against illegal wildlife trade.
At present, the cultivation of wild animals for food purposes is prohibited, and some wildlife farming industries are changing from edible to medicinal purposes.
Prevention is needed in the name of medicinal use
Mask whitewashing behavior for wild animal consumption
Effective control and crackdown on medicinal use
Illegal wildlife trade that potentially breeds demand
Protect populations of endangered species
Ensure public health safety!
Photo: Partly from the Institute for sustainable global environment