Survey of non-native small mammals traded in South Africa

dc.contributor.authorShivambu, Ndivhuwo
dc.contributor.authorShivambu, T.C. (Tinyiko)
dc.contributor.authorDowns, Colleen T.
dc.date.accessioned2022-08-04T05:50:04Z
dc.date.issued2022-09
dc.description.abstractThe sale of live non-native animals has become a social norm and is of global concern. The pet trade industry has become one of the main pathways where non-native small mammals are introduced worldwide. We conducted a questionnaire survey in South African pet shops from September 2018 to September 2019 to gain insights into non-native small mammalian species trade in South Africa. We also investigated whether the pet shop owners were aware of the South African National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (NEM: BA; No. 10 of 2004), which regulates and provides management and conservation of the country's biodiversity. A total of 111 pet shop owners/managers responded to the survey, with 26.6% of the owners reporting the sale of birds, 25.1% of fish and 22.5% of mammals. A total of 16 non-native small mammalian species were reported sold, with European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), Norwegian rats (Rattus norvegicus) and house mice (Mus musculus) being the most commonly sold pets. We found that breeders, animal rescues and pet shops were the major suppliers of small mammal pets, and in terms of the regulation, most respondents (67.8%) were aware of NEM: BA. However, despite the knowledge of the regulations, some of the traded species pose a serious invasion threat. As a result, we recommend increased regulation, monitoring and public awareness to prevent the potential negative impacts associated with non-native mammal species in South Africa.en_US
dc.description.departmentMammal Research Instituteen_US
dc.description.departmentZoology and Entomologyen_US
dc.description.embargo2023-03-30
dc.description.librarianhj2022en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipDSI-NRF Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology, University of Stellenbosch (ZA); Ford Wildlife Foundation (ZA); University of KwaZulu-Natal (ZA); National Research Foundation (ZA).en_US
dc.description.urihttp://www.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/ajeen_US
dc.identifier.citationShivambu, N., Shivambu, T. C., & Downs, C. T. (2022). Survey of non-native small mammals traded in South Africa. African Journal of Ecology, 60(3): 456-466. https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12999.en_US
dc.identifier.issn0141-6707 (print)
dc.identifier.issn1365-2028 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.1111/aje.12999
dc.identifier.urihttps://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/86694
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherWileyen_US
dc.rights© 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article : Survey of non-native small mammals traded in South Africa. African Journal of Ecology, vol. 60, no. 3, pp. 456-466, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.12999. The definite version is available at : wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/aje.en_US
dc.subjectEscapeen_US
dc.subjectInvasion pathwaysen_US
dc.subjectPet tradeen_US
dc.subjectProhibited speciesen_US
dc.subjectRegulationsen_US
dc.subjectReleaseen_US
dc.subjectRisken_US
dc.subjectSouth Africa (SA)en_US
dc.titleSurvey of non-native small mammals traded in South Africaen_US
dc.typePostprint Articleen_US

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