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)

A soldier of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment falls off a horse during a practice to participate in the state ceremonial surrounding this year's Platinum Jubilee celebrations at Hyde Park in London, Thursday, March 31, 2022. Around 170 horses and personnel of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment left their Hyde Park Barracks to form up and be inspected by the General Officer Commanding the Household Division, Major General Christopher Ghika. (Photo by Frank Augstein/AP Photo)

Parade goers during Brighton Pride Parade on August 03, 2019 in Brighton, England. Tens of thousands of revellers dressed in rainbow colours and elaborate costumes and descended on the seaside city to ask for equality for all. (Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)

Who Left The Tap Running by artist Simon McGrath is seen as part of the Sculpture by the Sea outdoor exhibition along the Bondi to Bronte coastal walk on November 4, 2011 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

A delegate poses for a photo at the end of the closing ceremony of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in front of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on Saturday, October 22, 2022. President Xi Jinping is officially set for a third term surrounded by allies, after key Communist Party officials without close ties to the Chinese leader exited the nation's top leadership body. (Photo by Bloomberg)

A woman feeds red-billed gulls on the Haigeng Dam of Dian Lake on March 5, 2023 in Kunming, Yunnan Province of China. (Photo by Yang Zheng/VCG via Getty Images)

Kalep, 5, in a bear costume, participates in parade where his father Johnny Lopez was the Elder Angel, during the Oruro Carnival, a traditional celebration that can be traced back to the indigenous Ito festival, in Oruro, Bolivia February 26, 2022. (Photo by Wara Vargas/Reuters)

A woman uses a plastic bad to protect her head amid snowfall in Beijing, China on December 14, 2023. (Photo by Tingshu Wang/Reuters)