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 puma rolls and yawns on frost-covered ground in Laguna Amarga, Torres del Paine, Chile in the first decade of December 2025, pausing briefly after several hours of rest before continuing on her way. (Photo by Sara Jenner/Solent News & Photo Agency)

A green iguana, or American iguana sits on an Aldabra giant tortoise, the largest tortoise of the world, in their enclosure at the zoo park of Lille, northern France, on February 11, 2019. (Photo by Philippe Huguen/AFP Photo)

Sloth “Paula” hangs from a branch in her enclosure at the zoo in Halle an der Saale, eastern Germany, on June 14, 2019. The two-toed sloth celebrated her 50th birthday and is, according to the zoo, the oldest sloth of the world. (Photo by Hendrik Schmidt/dpa/AFP Photo)

The six-months-old female koala cub holds on to the back of zoo keeper Lena at the zoo in Duisburg, Germany, 23 October 2015. The yet unnamed baby weighs 580 grams. (Photo by Roland Weihrauch/EPA)

American actress Heather Rae Young feeds an alpaca a carrot stick from her mouth during her bridal shower hosted by PETA at Kindred Spirits Care Farm on September 2, 2021. On Thursday morning, PETA and rescued animals from Kindred Spirits Care Farm will host a bridal shower for Heather Rae Young in honor of the longtime animal rights activist and Selling Sunset star’s upcoming nuptials to Tarek El Moussa. (Photo by Snorlax/The Mega Agency)

American actress Lili Reinhart in the first decade of September 2022 shares a topless photo and calls herself “your little Venice b*tch”. (Photo by lilireinhart/Instagram)

Two young deer seem to look bashfully at the camera after a playfight in Bushy Park, London early February 2023. (Photo by Lesley Marshall/South West News Service)