Could COVID-19 end the wildlife trade?

+ when tough won’t cut it Edition: US - Today's top story: The new coronavirus emerged from the global wildlife trade – and may be devastating enough to end it [Click here to view this message in your web-browser](. Edition: US 1 April 2020 [The Conversation]( Academic rigor, journalistic flair Editor's note Although the new coronavirus outbreak has upended normal life everywhere, it may ultimately lead to improvements, such as expansions of paid sick leave and telecommuting in the U.S. Colorado State University wildlife biologist George Wittemeyer hopes the pandemic will also help [end the global wildlife trade](, which scientists believe is the virus’s source. International commerce in animals and animal parts – some legal, some clandestine – is a multibillion-dollar industry. It spreads disease and has pushed many species, including the pangolin – an animal prized for its scales – close to extinction. 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