A biodiversity hotspot in a remote part of South Africa has become a hub for the illegal trade in protected plants, with organized crime groups profiting from overseas demand.
“They're not just stealing our land or our crops, they're also stealing our heritage,” the farmer angrily told the BBC, as he expressed dismay at the social and environmental problems caused by poaching.
Most of the plants in question are varieties known as succulents, named for their ability to hold water and survive in dry conditions.
Most of the world's succulent species are found only in the Succulent Karoo desert, which includes South Africa and Namibia.
Succulent species vary in size, shape and color – some look like small multi-colored buttons and others look like cacti, sprouting colorful flowers at certain times of the year.
Although these varieties can be grown in nurseries, global demand is fueling the killing of these plants in the wild which have been smuggled and sold online to consumers in the US, Europe and East Asia.
In Kamieskroon, a small town in the heart of the Namaqualand region of South Africa, the hills have become a haven for poachers.
Some of these species are very common in the area, so they can be eliminated with just a little hunting.
“In South Africa, we already know about seven species that are completely extinct and there are many species that will soon become extinct,” said Pieter van Wyk, a nursery keeper at /Ai/Ais-Richtersveld Transfrontier Park.
Statistics on how many plants are poached are hard to come by, but non-governmental organization Traffic reports that 1.6 million illegally harvested succulents were seized by South African law enforcement between 2019 and 2024. so the actual figure is likely to be much higher.
The South African government is well aware of this problem, unveiling a strategy in 2022 to combat poaching. It involves conducting public programs on the need to protect the environment.
Namaqualand has a rich variety of succulent plants, with an estimated 3,500 species. [Getty Images]
According to Mr Van Wyk and other conservationists, illegal killing of plants has been on the rise since the outbreak of Covid-19 in 2020.
Since international traders could not go to South Africa at that time, they turned to local people to collect succulents for them to send out of the country.
Mr. Van Wyk says that this has been accompanied by an increase in demand around the world.
“People had a lot of time trying to find something to occupy themselves with, and plants were one of the only things in your house, that could connect you to the outside world.”
This has been carried out by organized crime groups who hire teams of plant hunters and market wild plants on social media and e-commerce platforms.
“The syndicates saw this as an opportunity to do something about the virus… telling the public as much as possible: 'We have this very strange looking thing from the African continent',” Mr Van Wyk said.
“Then the public just lose their heads and say: 'I want to buy it', again [the syndicates] arrange for these animals to be hunted illegally,” he adds.
The increase in organized crime in the region has negative consequences for local communities.
“This area is a place for low-income people, rich people here, and people will take advantage of the opportunities to make money,” explained Malinda Gardiner from Conservation South Africa.
Expressing the same opinion, the breeder who spoke to the BBC says that hunting always brings money in his area.
“When we see young men going up to the mountains, we know they are hunters,” added the farmer, who asked not to be named because he was afraid of reprisals.
“They use screwdrivers to uproot succulents and carry backpacks and sacks to store the stolen plants.”
Conservationists say wild succulents should not be purchased online [Thuthuka Zondi / BBC]
A few days later, alcoholism and illegal activity break out.
“When they get money, there are more drugs, more alcohol, children are neglected because the mother is drunk, the father is drunk, there is no food,” Ms Gardiner added.
He is worried that the conflict will have long-term consequences.
“The small communities here really need each other… but this brings mistrust. It also brings division in the communities,” he said.
Mr. Van Wyk's assessment is clear: “People are abused and enslaved by syndicates and buyers.”
Efforts are being made to educate consumers on the importance of understanding where the plant may have come from.
China has become a major source of demand for wild succulents in the past few years, but an online campaign there to educate people about the illegal succulent trade has seen some results.
The Conophytum Clean Internet Campaign was launched in March 2023 by the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation.
According to the association's deputy secretary-general Linda Wong, they have seen an 80% reduction in online ads for conophytum – a type of succulent – with an unknown source, and consumers are starting to ask questions about where the plants sold online come from. .
“The key is awareness. Once people know, they want to take action. They want to take responsibility for eating those plants and enjoying their beauty in a responsible way,” he told the BBC.
Conservationists advise customers around the world to ask about the origin of the plant, and should never buy those advertised as wild.
Traffic and the UK's Kew Gardens recently announced that they are working with eBay to develop new ways to prevent the sale of wild succulents on their property.
In South Africa, Mr. Van Wyk says there is still a lot to be done to encourage the cultivation of sweet plants that can be grown and harvested legally, in order to reduce the need for illegal hunting.
“We as a country need to say: 'We have this resource, and there are other countries that benefit a lot from this, why shouldn't we?'” he told the BBC.
Mr Van Wyk still has a nursery in the /Ai/Ais-Richtersveld Transfrontier Park that looks after the plants seized by law enforcement, and he says they have found more than 200,000 so far.
“It's depressing to see things disappear. But when you study these plants, it brings a lot of joy and happiness and you just forget about all the nonsense that is happening in the world,” said Mr Van Wyk.
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