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ACRES 
Sep 12, 2015 
ACRES, NGOs 
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SATURDAY CRIME NIGHT POACHING IN SINGAPORE
Sadly, poaching activities happen right here in Singapore. People may neglect the seriousness of this illegal activity and may not even be aware that it illegal to capture individuals of most animal species from the wild.
The ACRES Animal Crime Investigation Unit (ACIU) has received 6 reports of alleged poaching activities over the past few months, which is of great concern.
Why is poaching of such concern?
1. Welfare issues. Capturing animals from the wild is a cruel act and causes suffering to the individual animals involved.
2. Ecosystem disruption. For example, the removal of predatory animals can result in an over-abundance of prey animals, resulting in the destabilisation and decline of vegetation; the decline of prey animals can lead to drops in predator numbers because of a reduction in food supply.
3. Environmental impact. Poaching activities often disturb and damage natural environments.
Under the Wild Animals and Birds Act, in Singapore it is an offence to kill, take, or keep any wild animal or bird without a licence (apart from a few exempted species such as pigeons and mynahs). Any person found doing so will be fined a maximum of S$1,000, and the animal will be seized.
Additionally, wild animals in nature reserves get extra protection under the Parks and Trees Act 2005, which prohibits the poaching of any animals in these areas.
What should you do if you think you witness poaching activities?
1. Collect information.
Take photographs and video evidence of traps, any animals caught in the traps, and the poachers themselves. If the poachers are using a vehicle, note the license plate number and take a photograph of it.
2. Call the authorities.
If you think that the poaching is inside a protected area, such as a nature reserve, alert Nparks (National Parks Board) rangers immediately by calling their Helpline at 1800 4717300.
For activities outside of protected areas, you can alert the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) at (65) 68052992.
You can also contact the 24-hour ACRES Wildlife Crime Hotline on (65) 97837782. Please note that, although we are not an enforcement agency, we can go to the site and wait for the authorities to arrive if you are unable to wait.
3. Do not release any trapped animals yourself. Wait until the authorities arrive.
4. Do not leave the site until the authorities arrive. Try to prevent the poachers from leaving, and take their traps. If they do leave but leave their traps behind, stay with the traps until the authorities come and remove them. If you must leave, please call the ACRES Wildlife Crime Hotline on (65) 97837782 and we will come to the site and wait for the authorities to arrive.
5. In an effort to assist the authorities with clamping down on illegal poaching activities, ACRES keeps records of poaching activities in Singapore. Please forward your evidence of poaching activities to the ACRES Animal Crime Investigation Unit at acrescrime@gmail.com for documentation purposes.
Poaching is a serious issue, and one that cannot be tackled overnight. It will require everyone keeping their eyes and ears open and reporting illegal poaching activities.
Do your part by sharing this post with your friends, and spread the word on how we can all do our bit to end the poaching of our native wild animals!
Find out more about how you can help to end poaching in Singapore here:
http://www.acres.org.sg/campaigns/current-campaigns/make-singapore-safe-for-our-wild-animals.html
If youd like to join the ACIU as a volunteer or intern, please click here to sign up: http://www.acres.org.sg/volunteer/volunteer-with-us.html
Or you may support our efforts to tackle wildlife crime and end animal cruelty by making a donation at http://www.acres.org.sg/support-us/donate-now.html
#ACRES #EndAnimalCruelty #AnimalCrimeInvestigationUnit #ACIU #NativeWildlife #AntiPoaching
Source: https://www.facebook.com/ACRESasia/photos/a.223077136522.136..
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