Interpol-led Operation Thunder 2025 nets 30,000 live animals, 10,500 arthropods and 4,640 seizures across 134 nations

Key facts

• More than 30,000 live animals were seized during a month-long global crackdown.
• Nearly 10,500 butterflies, spiders and insects — many protected under CITES — were seized around the world.
• A record 5.8 tonnes of bushmeat was seized, with a notable increase in cases from Africa into Europe.
• Authorities seized 215 kg and 1,900 pieces of elephant ivory; 28 kg and seven rhinoceros horns; seven tonnes of pangolin scales and meat.
• Over 10 tonnes of live plants and plant derivatives were seized, driven largely by demand from horticulture and collector markets.
• Illicit timber is estimated to account for between 15 per cent and 30 per cent of all timber traded globally.