Spain investigates private taxidermy collection with more than 1,000 animals : NPR

An elephant within the collection.

Spanish Civil Guard

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Spanish Civil Guard

An elephant within the collection.

Spanish Civil Guard

The Spanish Civil Guard says it’s investigating an individual who owned a private taxidermy collection with more than 1,000 animals, together with some which might be protected or nearing extinction.

Species of cheetah, leopard, polar bear, rhinoceros, alongside with almost 200 ivory elephant tusks, had been among the many in depth collection, valued at 29 million euros — more than $31 million.

Officials recognized 1,090 stuffed animals in two warehouses that cowl more than 50,000 sq. meters in Bétera, a city north of Valencia, Spain. Of the animals, 405 are thought of protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Ivory elephant tusks within the collection.

Spanish Civil Guard

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Spanish Civil Guard

Ivory elephant tusks within the collection.

Spanish Civil Guard

Among the collection was a minimum of one scimitar oryx, which was declared extinct within the wild by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2000. The almost extinct Bengal tiger and addax, which is a white antelope, are additionally among the many collection.

Next, the Civil Guard says brokers will examine whether or not any documentation justifies the possession of the taxidermied animals.