Species Use Database

Greater hog badger
Arctonyx collaris

Used for Food and feed in Hubei

A. Species

Scientific name: Arctonyx collaris

Common name(s): Greater hog badger

Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Vulnerable


B. Location of use

Geographic location(s):

  • Hubei

Country/Region: China / Hubei Province


C. Scale of assessment

Scale of assessment: Sub-national / Sub-region / Sub-State

Name/Details of location: Towns of Wufeng and Yuguan in Wufeng Tujiazu Autonomous County (WTAC) in Hubei Province


D. Timescale of use

Start Year: 2011

End Year: 2012


E. Information about the use

How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Type of use: Extractive

Practice of use: Hunting and/or Trapping of live terrestrial and aerial animals

Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal

Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism

Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed

Motivation of use: Basic subsistence

Is this use legal or illegal?: Illegal under national law


F. Information about the Users

Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people


G. Information about the sustainability of use

Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: Local genetic diversity survey.

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Microsatellite genetic markers show that the genetic diversity of those badgers sold at markets in so diverse that they are being sourced over a wider area, implying declining hog badger population density to draw from.

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: this study

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The exploitation of hog badgers is illegal under Chinese national law (listed in 2000), leading to conflict between local hunters and traders and the State Forestry Administration (policing).

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered unsustainable

Details of assessment carried out: this study

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The exploitation of hog badgers is illegal under Chinese national law (listed in 2000), leading to conflict between local hunters and traders and the State Forestry Administration (policing).

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Details of assessment carried out: this study does not record this

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: this study does not record this

Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded

Details of assessment carried out: this study does not record this

Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: this study does not record this


Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species

Stop hunting them / selling them as food in local markets.


Record source

Information about the record source: scientific_pub

Date of publication/issue/production: 2015-01-01T00:00:00+0000

Source Reference(s):

Chen, Wenwen, Chris Newman, Zhijin Liu, Yayoi Kaneko, Keita Omote, Ryuichi Masuda, Christina D. Buesching, David W. Macdonald, Zongqiang Xie, and Youbing Zhou. "The illegal exploitation of hog badgers (Arctonyx collaris) in China: genetic evidence exposes regional population impacts." Conservation genetics resources 7, no. 3 (2015): 697-704.

Date of record entry: 2022-11-10