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)

Residents gather to watch fireworks rehearsals ahead of the upcoming 100th anniversary of the founding of China's ruling Communist Party in Beijing on Tuesday, June 22, 2021. Chinese authorities have closed Beijing's central Tiananmen Square to the public, eight days ahead of a major celebration being planned to mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Communist Party. (Photo by Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)

A woman shouts slogans as she marches to Congress to commemorate International Women's Day in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, March 9, 2020. (Photo by Natacha Pisarenko/AP Photo)

Regina Sarrubbo (25, Long Island resident, personal fitness trainer) takes advantage of the Brooklyn Bridge Park in NYC waterfront by working on her flexibility moves on June 18, 2020. (Photo by Paul Martinka/The New York Post)

A handout picture made available by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) shows, NASA teams working around Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft after it landed at White Sands Missile Range’s Space Harbor, in Las Cruces, New Mexico, 25 May 2022. Boeing’s Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) is Starliner’s second uncrewed flight test to the International Space Station as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. OFT-2 serves as an end-to-end test of the system's capabilities. (Photo by Bill Ingalls/NASA/EPA/EFE)

Nationalist youths throw bottles at police officers after the annual Orange march on July 12, 2016 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The controversial Ardoyne interface is a flash point between the Catholic and Protestant communities with trouble flaring in the area frequently during the so called marching season. The Protestant Orange bands from the nearby area have been stopped from parading past the Catholic Ardoyne for the past three years. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

TVs display a reaction of Japan's Uta Abe, the gold medallist of the judo women's -52kg during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, to celebrate the victory of her brother Hifumi Abe as he wins the judo men's -66kg final at an electronics retail shop in Tokyo on July 25, 2021. (Photo by Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP Photo)

A rickshaw puller waits for customers during heavy rainfall in Kathmandu, Nepal, 28 May 2021. As Government stricken nationwide lockdown from 28 May 2021 to control coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection and deaths, low-income families are struggling to cater for their daily lives. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA/EFE)