Scientists from the United Kingdom and Norway released a report revealing North Korea's illegal wildlife transaction. There are concerns that the collection and illegal transaction of wildlife at the government level is causing serious issues for biodiversity across the Korean Peninsula.
A research team from University College London (UCL), the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) Animal Research Institute, and Norway's Natural Research Institute published a report analyzing the state of illegal wildlife transaction in North Korea in the journal 'Biological Conservation' on the 8th (local time).
The research team interviewed defectors who had escaped North Korea between 2021 and 2022. The interview subjects included former hunters, wildlife transaction intermediaries, and buyers.
According to testimonies from defectors, North Korea collects wildlife and their byproducts that are harvested by hunters or communities at the government level. This includes animals protected by law, such as mountain goats and otters, as well as endangered species like Asiatic black bears.
The report explained that "wildlife is used for furs to make winter clothing or exported to China," noting that "just as North Korea has used resources like timber or coal as sources of revenue and been involved in the illegal transaction of weapons and drugs."
Joshua Elves-Powell, a UCL researcher who led the study, said, "The desperation of residents due to shortages of food, medicine, and necessities in North Korea, combined with the limitations of the national economy, is leading to large-scale wildlife harvesting," adding that it poses a significant threat to the biodiversity of North Korea and its surrounding regions.
North Korea also has systems in place to prevent illegal wildlife transaction and maintains protected areas. However, the research team explained that these measures are not functioning due to the prolonged economic hardship.
The research team stated that the farming of wildlife such as otters, pheasants, deer, and Asiatic black bears is rampant in North Korea. It is said that North Korea began raising bears to extract bile in the mid-20th century, a practice that later spread to South Korea and China.
The report viewed that North Korea's overexploitation of wildlife poses a serious threat to biodiversity. The research team noted, "There is evidence that almost all mammals weighing more than 0.5 kg are targets of some form of capture," adding that the black marten, valued for its fur, appears to be virtually extinct in North Korea. The Amur tiger and Amur leopard are in similar situations, and the population of deer has significantly decreased due to overexploitation.
Dr. Elves-Powell warned that if the continuous overexploitation of wildlife occurs in North Korea, it could thwart the recovery of biodiversity across the Korean Peninsula. He noted, "While the population of Amur tigers in the recent North-China border area shows signs of recovery, they may become targets for hunters if they cross into North Korea," adding that North Korea could serve as a barrier to terrestrial animal movement between the Korean Peninsula and the continent.
References
Biological Conservation (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2025.111102.