US 'major illegal ivory importer' (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website, The Hague

The US has become a major importer of illegal ivory, according to a report from the British organisation Care for the Wild International (CWI).

The conservation group's assessment is based on more than 1,000 visits to shops by its investigators.

CWI also notes that the internet is an increasingly important conduit for the ivory trade.

Leading online auction site eBay has announced it will prevent ivory being traded internationally from its sites.

Its announcement followed an investigation by another conservation group, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (Ifaw), which recently documented the scale of ivory movements on eBay.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6724635.stm