A novel application of mark-recapture to examine behaviour associated with the online trade in elephant ivory

The illegal trade a de in elephant ivory is driving the unlawful of such that populations are now suffering unsustainable redutions. The internet is increasingly used as a platform to conduct illegal trade, including elephant ivory. As a globaly accessible medium the internet is as highly attractive to involved in the illegal trade as it is challenging to regulate. characterising the online illegal wildlife (ivory) trade is complex, yet key to informing enforcement actives. We applied mark recapture to investigate behaviour associated with the online trade in elephant ivory on eBay UK a generalist online marketplace. Our results indicate that trade takes Place via eBay UK, despite its policy prohibiting this, and that two disinct trading populations exist, characterised by the Pattern of their ivory sales. We suggest these may represent a larage number of occasional (or non-commercial) seller and a smaller number of (or commercial) sellers. Directing resource towards reducing the volume of occasional sales, such as through education,would enable greater focus to be placed upon characterising the extent and value of the illegal, commercial online ivory trade. MRC has the potential to characterise the illegal trade in ivory and diverse wildlife commodities traded using various online platforms.