Pangolins: Health and Conservation

A wildlife veterinarian examines a sedated pangolin. She uses a stethoscope to listen to its vitals.

Pangolins are the most trafficked mammals in the world. By researching infectious disease, studying the clinical health of pangolins and practicing conservation medicine, Smithsonian scientists hope to make an impact on the long-term survival of the species.

Pangolins are illegally captured from the wild and traded throughout the world but are primarily smuggled to China and Vietnam for use in traditional cultural practices and for human consumption. Wild populations in Southeast Asia have plummeted, prompting a compensatory increase in the poaching of African pangolin species to meet the demand.

All eight species of pangolin are protected by national and international laws, and the Sunda and Chinese pangolin are considered critically endangered. Despite these concerns, relatively little is known about pangolin health, biology, ecology and genetics as compared to other species. Due to their solitary, nocturnal natures and burrowing tendencies, pangolins can be elusive and difficult to study. They can also be challenging to manage in human care, due to unique dietary needs and susceptibility to stress.

Smithsonian researchers are collaborating with Save Vietnam’s Wildlife, a rescue, rehabilitation and research center for pangolins and small carnivores located in Cuc Phuong National Park. Both local hunting and international trade routes occur in Vietnam, and each year SVW receives hundreds of pangolins that have been confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade.

Wildlife veterinarians from the Global Health Program are providing assistance in the form of clinical medicine, research and veterinary capacity building, which includes skill training, equipment procurement and policy development.

SVW and GHP are embarking on a Sunda pangolin research project — one of the first of its kind to assess the health of this species through physical exams, biological sample (e.g., blood, urine, feces) analysis, and anesthesia. Researchers will collect data to establish normal values for health and vital parameters, which will help veterinarians provide the best possible care to pangolin patients and maximize rehabilitation success.

Continue Exploring

A whiteboard from a scenario planning workshop with x-and-y graphs with axes representing "political will" and "population size" and colorful dots added to sections

Case Study: Scenario Planning in Northwestern Virginia

Virginia Working Landscape

Case Study: Land Use Modeling in Northwestern Virginia
A researcher stands among tall trees in a sunlit forest in Virginia.

Changing Landscapes Initiative
Smithsonian scientists work alongside community members in Northwestern Virginia to evaluate the impacts of land-use change on wildlife, ecosystem services and community health.
Corals

Coral Biobank Alliance
Smithsonian scientists are part of the Coral Biobank Alliance, a global network of coral experts preserving corals for restoration and research.
coral reef

Coral Cryopreservation Training Course
An underwater photo of a coral reef with a large coral in the foreground surrounded by smaller corals and fish swimming in the distance

Coral Species Cryopreserved with Global Collaborators​
View a list of the coral species that have been cryopreserved using a technique developed by Smithsonian scientists.
Herd of wildebeest grazing on an open grassy plain with one tree

Wildebeest Conservation
Conservation Ecology Center scientists are tracking the movements of white-bearded wildebeest to understand how changes across the landscape impact the species.
A small bird called a piping plover stands on a sandy shore

Protecting Piping Plovers in the Great Lakes
In 2022, the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center will begin a new research project to help protect endangered piping plovers from predation by merlins.
A swift fox wearing a tracking collar is released at Ft. Belknap

Swift Fox Recovery
Smithsonian scientists, in collaboration with the Fort Belknap Fish and Wildlife Department, are embarking on a five-year swift fox reintroduction project to restore swift foxes to tribal lands and to help reestablish connectivity between disjointed swift fox populations.
A large leafy tree growing adjacent to a body of water, with cattle grazing in the grass underneath its canopy

Conserving the World’s Largest Working Wetland
Conservation Ecology Center researchers are collaborating with institutions in Brazil and other Smithsonian colleagues to support sustainable cattle ranching in the Pantanal wetland.