In fight against wildlife trafficking, Brazil police turn to nuclear science

• News & Highlights

In Brazil, as in many other biodiverse countries around the world, the commercial trade of some species of wildlife is allowed — as long as the animal was bred in captivity and not captured from the wild. But identifying illegally captured wild animals in the possession of authorized breeders has always been a challenge for government agencies in Brazil. In many cases, proof of fraud is only possible through laboratory analysis, but wildlife trafficking operations rarely have access to such technology.

In Brazil’s Amazonas state, the police are bringing the big guns to this high-tech fight, investing in cutting-edge equipment that they hope will give them an edge in tackling wildlife trafficking and other environmental crimes.

Since January, the state branch of the Federal Police has been using an isotope ratio mass spectrometer to detect cases of wildlife “warming” — the practice by traders of trying to pass off wild-caught animals as captive-bred ones.

“We are the first Brazilian police force to implement this technique. The Federal Police is on the cutting edge,” says Alexandre Silva Saraiva, who until April was the regional superintendent of the police force.

The technology didn’t come cheap. The Amazonas Federal Police invested 2.6 million reais ($514,000) for the equipment and laboratory infrastructure. But in a way, it paid for itself: of the total amount, 2.5 million reais ($494,000) came from fines collected from environmental violators, and the rest from the police budget.