A dramatic rise in owning exotic pets in China is fuelling global demand for threatened species. The growing trade in alligators, snakes, monkeys, crocodiles and spiders is directly linked to species loss in some of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Here: A fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is groomed in a pet store in central Beijing. Native to the Sahara in North Africa, the species became a popular pet after being depicted as a character in Disney’s 2016 animated movie Zootopia. Individuals can cost between $2,000–$3,000. (Photo by Sean Gallagher/The Guardian)

Revellers out and about in Newcastle, England on “Black Eye Friday” or “Mad Friday” on December 22, 2017 as people across the country celebrate the start of the Christmas break by hitting bars, pubs and clubs. This partygoer had so much fun she looks lost. (Photo by Craig Connor/North News and Pictures)

Crocodile meat parts stands on display on Huangsha Seafood Market in Guangzhou, Guandong Province, China, 20 January 2018. Tsukiji Market of China or Huangsha Seafood Market is biggest one in Southern China and one of the biggest in China, as there are literally hundreds of different varieties of fish and seafood scattered throughout the market. (Photo by Aleksandar Plavevski/EPA/EFE)

Men carry a dog, wearing a costume and seated on a stool, as a form of respect as they believe that dogs found water for their ancestors, during a local festival for the Miao ethnic minority in Jianhe county, Guizhou Province, China, August 14, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

A Buddhist nun walks along a path as a stupa is seen at a temple in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka October 16, 2016. (Photo by Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters)

People pose for pictures on the banks of Yangtze River on New Year's Eve in Wuhan, in China’s central Hubei province on December 31, 2020. (Photo by Noel Celis/AFP Photo)

A vintage car sits in flood water on March 20, 2019 in Hamburg, Iowa. Although flood water in the town has started to recede many homes and businesses remain surrounded by water. Several Midwest states are battling some of the worst flooding they have experienced in decades as rain and snow melt from the recent “bomb cyclone” has inundated rivers and streams. At least three deaths have been linked to the flooding. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

A wrestling camel adorned with colourful ornaments takes part in the Camel Beauty Contest ahead of the annual 40th Efes Selcuk Camel Wrestling Festival, in the Aegean town of Selcuk, near Izmir, Turkey on January 15, 2022. (Photo by Murad Sezer/Reuters)